Anthony Albanese has been named prime minister of Australia for a republic that says it is time to start debating a referendum when the queen’s reign “is coming to an end”.
EXCLUSIVE: The minister for a republic elected by Anthony Albanese has pointed to the possibility of a referendum in the second term of the Labor government while Queen Elizabeth II celebrates her platinum jubilee.
The issue has been firmly on Labor’s radar since former leader Bill Shorten declared in 2017 that there would be a referendum on his first term in office if elected.
But the Albanian government has abandoned this plan and has pledged to hold a national vote on the constitutional recognition of Australian Indigenous people through a voice in Parliament in its first term.
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Republican Deputy Minister Matt Thistlethwaite said that while the government’s priority was indigenous recognition, it was also time to start talking about becoming a republic.
“I would like to congratulate the Queen on her jubilee and reign, I think she has been a fantastic monarch and leader of the Commonwealth,” Thistlethwaite told Pete Stefanovic of Sky News Australia on Thursday.
“But when it comes to the eve of his reign, I think Australians are starting to wonder, of course, what will come next for Australia.
“We want King Charles or we are mature enough or independent enough to seek to appoint one of our own as head of state.”
The irony of the new position was front and center on Wednesday, when Mr Thistlethwaite was sworn in by the Queen’s representative in Australia, Governor General David Hurley.
Mr Thistlethwaite said he joked with his Excellency about the appointment and told him: “Don’t worry, Government, your term is secure under us.”
“I think he acknowledges, as many Australians do, that the Queen ‘s reign is coming to an end and I think this is the right time for us to start this discussion once again.
“And start looking to our future and recognizing our unique identity and culture, our independence as a nation, our maturity and our end as one as head of state.”
The issue was first brought to a referendum in 1999, but received a “No” vote by a national majority in all states and territories except the ACT.
The push for an Australian republic has faded from the political debate, but Thistlethwaite has pointed to the possibility of a referendum in the second term of the Labor government.
“We have said that the Voice in Parliament is our priority in a first term and constitutional change and the referendum are difficult and this will need some work,” he said.
“I believe that if we are to succeed in this space, the next natural step that Australia wants to take is to have one of us as its head of state.
“So it will not be something we will do in our first term, hopefully if we are re-elected it could be something we will start looking at in a second term of an Albanian Labor government.”
This year, the Queen becomes the first British monarch to celebrate a platinum jubilee after 70 years of service.
Celebrations will take place across the UK from Thursday 2 June to Sunday 5 June to mark the occasion.