Previous OurSay
Next OurSay
Click here to see other OurSays. You have 7 votes per OurSay!
Stephen Mayne, John Thwaites, Fran Bailey, OurCommunity.com.au, CC
in
“Communities in Control ”
Open
Ged Kearney, ACTU, Secure Jobs. Better Future., Josh Peak
in
“Secure jobs for a better future”
Closed
Cr Cathy Oke, City of Melbourne
in
“Rio Plus 20 Agenda”
Responses up
Crikey, House of Representatives, Adam Bandt MP, Your question
in
“The People's Question”
Responses up
Campbell Newman
in
“The Queensland Agenda”
Responses up
Andrew Demetriou, Amanda Vanstone, Charlie Pickering
in
“The Australian Republic”
Responses up
Anna Bligh
in
“The Queensland Agenda - Part 1”
Responses up
Prof. Noam Chomsky, Deakin University
in
“Contours Of Global Order”
Responses up
666 ABC Canberra, UC, Canberra Refugee Support, Julie Posetti
in
“Reporting Refugees”
Responses up
John Merritt, EPA
in
“EPA Victoria”
Responses up
Robert Manne, The Quarterly Essay
in
“Bad News”
Responses up
Andrew Demetriou, Kevin Sheedy, Matthew Richardson
in
“AFL Finals Panel ”
Responses up
The Climate Agenda, Michael Bachelard, Misha Schubert, Deborah Gough
in
“The Sunday Age”
Responses up
You?, Greg Hywood, Mark Scott, Sophie Black
in
“Australian Media Leaders”
Responses up
Kelly O’Dwyer, Deb O’Neill , Larissa Waters
in
“Women in Politics”
Responses up
David Thodey
in
“Telstra CEO David Thodey”
Responses up
The Hon. Martin Dixon MP, Vic SRC
in
“Victorian Education Minister”
Responses up
Margaret Simons, Anna Krien, Tim Soutphommasane
in
“Quarterly Essay”
Responses up
Malcolm Fraser
in
“Renewing Democracy”
Responses up
Q&A
in
“Q&A - After The Budget - May 16th”
Responses up
The Australian Republic
Some say an Australian Republic is the final step in a journey towards independence and nationhood for our country. It will have a resident Australian citizen as Head of State, chosen through a process that reflects Australian values such as equality, fairness and democracy.
If you are interested in the role of a future Australian Head of State, OurSay is offering you the opportunity to ask the big questions about what it means for Australia to one day become a Republic.
Working with the Australian Republican Movement (ARM) the top 5 questions on OurSay will be discussed by the featured panelists at the ARM Victorian Republican Conference held at Deakin University (Melbourne Campus) on Saturday 4th February 2012. You can download a flyer for the event here.
The Question
Australia has the best of both worlds. Our Constitution is great and we DO NOT need to become a Republic. What would we gain from becoming a Republic except potential instability?
We have a system which works so why on earth play with it just to suit a bunch of people who have some unspecified problem with the monarchy. As it is, Australia is legally separated from the UK so the monarchy is really nothing but a titular head with no real power or control over Australia. Our present government is currently trying to cede more power to the UN than the queen really ever had. Given that they are an unallected bunch of political elites who appear to have no interest in the welfare of the average Australian that scares me far more than the monarchy ever has or could!!!! For those who would bring up the "sacking" of the Whitlam government in the 70's my response would be that Fraser was only installed as a caretaker. He was not able to carry out any "policy" legislation and his role, until an election was held, was just to operate the government. The nett effect of Kerr's actions were to cause an election where the Australian people made their choice and the Queen had nothing to do with it. I must say I am looking forward to the next election in Australia. I rather think that the Australian people will make another rather definitive statement on this current Labor government.
David, what potential instability are you speaking of? 'Fred' not sure if you realise this, but your view of the UN relates exactly to the monarchy. They too are an unelected bunch of elites who appear to have no interest in the welfare of the average Australian. So why keep them?
One benefit is that Australian taxes would no longer be spent on royal visits and royal gifts. An Australian republic: a worthwhile investment | David Donovan & Mike Keating | ABC The Drum | 28 July 2010 http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/35542.html "whenever a member of the royal family visits Australia - any member, not just the Queen - the Australian taxpayer picks up the tab. For example, it cost us almost $400,000 for a five day tour by Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall in 2005 and $1.8 million for a visit by the Queen to Melbourne in 2006." "In 2006-07 the Australian Government paid almost $400,000 for a royal coach that was built by an Australian monarchist, Jim Frecklington, as a private gift to the Queen for her 80th birthday."
Another benefit, I think, would be the healthy sense of independence and maturity as a nation that this change engenders. Having grown from a penal colony into a strong, proud and free republic, this has the positive potential to change the way we are seen, the way we look at ourselves, and the way we represent ourselves and our aspirations as a people. In intangible ways, we affect the tangible. I think it would be unfortunate for our national identify if the writing of our history was to show that we clutched onto the constitutional apron strings of Mother England for as long as possible and were reluctant to realise our ultimate national self.
We DO need to become a republic, because we have a middle class, hanovarian, foreginer as head of state. Even the British Foreign Office recognises the inevitability of this change.
We DO need to become a republic, because we have a middle class, hanovarian, foreginer as head of state. Even the British Foreign Office recognises the inevitability of this change.