Constitution

Some years ago the BBC produced a brilliant documentary series about the House of Lords which chronicled the strange existence of those hereditary peers who by dint of their birth had wound up being underemployed for life in this absurd parliamentary chamber.

There was one chap aged only in his 30s who was not only completely loaded, he was also completely smashed, living in the rundown country estate his late father had left to him where the only functioning room appeared to be the cellar. Every morning he would wake up, put on his tweed trousers and a silly cravat, and start working his way through bottle after bottle of 1950s French burgundy. His face was dotted with burst capillaries and he sat in his comfy chair like that Uncle Monty from Withnail and I, rabbitting about how one felt a sense of duty in maintaining one’s family traditions by serving as a Lord.

It now seems that even the Brits have realised their Upper House is an elitist anachronism and a waste of money.

Continue reading "Making the swill less unrepresentative" »

Prince William’s coming visit seems to have resulted in the dramatic conversion of a republican celebrity. This is none other than the editor and media personality Ms. Ita Clare Buttrose AO OBE, who campaigned for the politicians’ republic during the 1999 referendum.

Readers of the Wentworth Courier, which circulates in Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs, were surprised then by her harsh dismissal of the No case and indeed of constitutional monarchists.

Ms Buttrose was the founding editor of Cleo which, with its nude male centrefolds, was aimed at young single women. She later edited the more conservative Australian Women’s Weekly and the Daily and Sunday Telegraphs.

Continue reading "The Prince William effect: republican celebrity converts" »

Harry M Miller’s revelation that Prince Charles wondered why Australia remained a constitutional monarchy will come as no surprise to those of us who have been reporting on and watching the British royals for some time.

If there’s one thing that senior members of the royal family detest it’s the fawning and groveling of those they meet, and Australia heads the list of major offenders in that department.

As an example, some years ago the Queen decided that the last century habit of women dropping a curtsy was no longer necessary but the individuals could continue to bend the knee if it made them happy.

Continue reading "If our next King thinks we should be a republic, then…" »

This Wednesday, as we commemorate the sacrifice of countless Australians in war, we will also no doubt be reminded that November 11 has other significance in Australia’s journey.

It will be the 34th anniversary of the Dismissal, an act of infamy against a democratically-elected Government that is burned into our national consciousness, and into the ALP’s soul.

So each year, in addition to the Last Post played at war memorials around Australia, we see the TV replays of the famous scenes on Parliament steps, which have become almost a mantra for an era of change and conflict in Australian politics. 

Continue reading "The dismissal: our greatest act of political infamy" »

We forget to consult history at our peril. 

It is very relevant to the Rudd Government’s latest assault on the sovereignty of the people – that is the proposal of its hand picked committee, headed by Father Frank Brennan, to impose upon them a charter of rights masquerading under the title of a Human Rights Act.

The last time Labor tried for a bill of rights it was by way of a Constitutional amendment to insert a mini bill of rights with the aim of continual enlargement.

Continue reading "Bill of rights is a dangerous lawyers’ picnic" »

Yesterday we blew the froth off a couple in honour of our sovereign, Queen Elizabeth II, and observed her birthday with a package of pieces on the republic which, overall, concluded there appears to be no mass groundswell for another crack at constitutional reform.

Even the republicans are worried that our pollies are simply waiting for the Queen to die so that the issue can somehow resolve itself. Follow the links below to read the pieces.

The losers in 1999 have the utter gall to demand we abandon our oldest public holiday celebrating our oldest institution, one central to our Westminster system.

On almost every Queen’s Birthday republicans usually rush into the media. This year they’re saying putting republicanism on the political agenda will help the nation recover from the recession. Without a scintilla of evidence, they say the growing interest in Anzac Day is because of republican sentiment.

This shouldn’t surprise anyone. In the nineties they were saying a republic would overcome unemployment, improve trade, free artistic talent, increase immigration, and enhance our standing in Asia.

Continue reading "Republican losers would scrap our oldest holiday" »

The republic debate has evolved since 1999. Traditional approaches to the question still have bite, including general arguments for or against monarchy/republic as well as the nationalist appeal of a republic in Australia and the cost to the public purse of constitutional change.

But the recent Senate hearings into Senator Bob Brown’s bill to hold a republic plebiscite at the time of the next election displayed a number of new developments.

The inevitable first new aspect of the debate has been about the meaning of the 1999 referendum result. An important thread of monarchist argument, often tried in letters to the editor, has been that the matter has been decided because the people have spoken. Republicans have had their chance and should abandon their cause.

Continue reading "Waiting for Queen’s death soft option for republic" »

Here’s the worst political ad ever made in Australia:

It’s not a very good version, I know. It’s grainy, and the words don’t line up properly.

But you get the general idea: the two worst prime ministers of our modern history, delivering a boring and patronising monologue about something which should have been exciting and inclusive.

Continue reading "Clapped-out baby-boomers have killed the republic" »