Australia's governor-general Bryce in republic call
The Queen's representative in Australia has reportedly become the first serving governor-general to publicly back the country becoming a republic.
Quentin Bryce, 70, made the comments during a speech in Sydney in which she outlined a future vision for Australia.
"Perhaps one day, one young girl or boy may even grow up to be our nation's first head of state," she said, reigniting the republic debate.
Australians voted against becoming a republic in a 1999 referendum.
The country is a parliamentary democracy that retains Britain's monarch as its head of state.
In the 1999 vote, Australians opted to preserve the status quo, with Queen Elizabeth II remaining as the head of state - although the republican movement was split between those who wanted an elected president and those who preferred a parliamentary appointee.
The issue has largely fallen into the political doldrums in Australia in recent years.
'Personal view'Ms Bryce, the country's first female governor-general, was appointed in 2008 by then-prime minister Kevin Rudd in 2008. Her term ends in March next year.
Her comments, made at the end of a four-part lecture series, have reignited a debate about the nation's ties to Britain.
"We will always be friends with Britain, but now we should be equals," said Geoff Gallop, the head of the Australian Republican Movement.
"We need an unambiguous, independent national identity that reflects and celebrates our freedom, our unity, our values of the fair go and our place in the world."
However, David Flint of the Australians for Constitutional Monarchy described her comments as "a pity".
"The constitutional system requires that the Crown be above politics... it goes against the position. There are a number of people who are now going to wonder about her.
"There's this sense of division that she's created... we've got commentators everywhere on these issues, couldn't she have left them alone until she was out of the office?" Mr Flint told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott, a staunch royalist who used to be the executive director of the Australians for Constitutional Monarchy, said Ms Bryce was entitled to her opinion.
"It's more than appropriate for the governor-general approaching the end of her term to express a personal view on a number of subjects and that's what she was doing, she was expressing a personal view and, as you would expect from Quentin Bryce, she did it with grace and style," he said.
Ms Bryce also voiced support for same-sex marriage - a position that Mr Abbott, a devout Catholic, also opposes.
Comment number 119.
Jim20 Minutes ago
The "commonwealth" itself belongs in the history textbooks along with the BritishEmpire.
The commonwealth does carry the stigma of colonialism and has had defectors in the past.
it is in fact more of a socia club and should have free trade benefits a la NAFTA or Mercosur to make membership worthwhile
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Comment number 115.
docblue24 Minutes ago
Although I agree with the Governor-General, it does seem a bit strange that she was happy to accept the position of being the Queen's representative in Australia (with all of the perks that includes) whilst at the same time questioning the role of the person/institution that she is representing.
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Comment number 52.
MrMuttley2 Hours ago
I personally am surprised that Australia hasn't already declared itself a republic. It's not like London has any great hand in the running of the country.
That being said as always it's up to the good people of Australia who they wants as their head of state. Not the Governor.
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Comment number 50.
hendonm12 Hours ago
As things stand Australia, Canada and New Zealand are the only sunrise economies left in the Western world. Faced with a demographically and economically declining Europe, and a United States facing huge potential economic problems for a variety of reasons, they would be very ill-advised to lose their constitutional links both to one another and to the United Kingdom.
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Comment number 40.
Sydneysiderexile2 Hours ago
I am a Brit living in Aus. One of the issues with it happening is that it could then be yet another layer of decision making government here. The state and federal system can already be farcical. Last time around I believe there was general support but the pro republican camp was split on how it should look, if I recall. On that basis I can't see it happening.
Really though, what would it change?
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