Secret ‘Palace Letters’ to Be Released Today
The historic ‘palace letters’ – correspondence between Buckingham Palace and Governor-General John Kerr in the period around the dismissal of the Whitlam Government in November 1975 – will be released today (14 July) by the National Archives at 11am AEST.
The Australian Republic Movement (ARM) has welcomed their release, saying that Australians deserved to know to what extent the British Royal Family and Buckingham Palace was involved in one of the most controversial chapters in Australian political history.
Buckingham Palace had attempted to veto the letters’ release indefinitely, extending the embargo on the release of the letters until 2027 at the earliest and claiming their publication would hurt Australian-British relations and undermine the “trusting relationship” the Queen’s Governors-General had in her. In a 6-1 High Court decision in May, the letters were declared public property, overruling the Queen’s veto and assertion they were private property.
ARM National Director Sandy Biar said the decision highlighted the absurdity of having a foreign head of state who could use their personal discretion to deny Australians access to important national documents.
“The High Court decision ended four decades of secrecy. This kind of transparency should be the norm in a democracy, not the exception” Mr Biar said.
“Professor Jenny Hocking has shown remarkable determination in pursuing their release. It is a victory for all Australians.
“Of course, the Monarchy can continue to exercise this kind of veto on other similar correspondence. It’s time Australia had an Australian as our head of state that is accountable to Australians and Australian laws” Mr Biar said.
A poll released this week by YouGov found that 62% of Australians support Australia having its independence from the British Monarchy.
ARM Chair Peter FitzSimons said the release of the letters came at a time when the Movement was experiencing a huge surge in support across the country, following Harry and Meghan’s spectacular ‘self-isolation’ from the Monarchy, the scandals involving Prince Andrew and the increasing national mood towards greater independence.
“With almost two-thirds of Australians behind the cause, now is the time for us all to come together to take this important step forward and declare our independence from Her Majesty and the Royal Family” Mr FitzSimons said.
“We’ve shown time and time again that Australian can run its own show. We’re a magnificent country with incredible potential and it’s time we had an Australian at the head of our nation.”