Speech: National Director Address to WA Members

Good evening everyone and thanks for joining us tonight.

I want to start by noting one of ARM's core values is Unity and Belonging:

We celebrate Australia as the most successful multicultural community in the world built on 65,000 years of Indigenous culture, over 230 years of European settlement and British institutions, and a vibrant immigration program which welcomes people from all backgrounds – where we are all proud to belong.

At its heart, an Australian republic is about Aussies. About our people. About putting power into the hands of the people to chart their own course.

And, with this in mind, we acknowledge our past, celebrate our present and embrace our future.

I also want to apologise Craig isn’t here with us. As I’m sure you’ve seen, Craig has indicated he won’t be recontesting the election given a number of other commitments he has, including those keeping him elsewhere tonight, but he does send his regards. He wants the ARM to be able to succeed with Co-Chairs who can give it the time and attention it deserves.

Nova has also resigned from her position as Co-Chair and again she’s got a number of advocacy roles she’s pursuing too. Both are honourable people and have made honourable decisions to let new Co-Chairs put ARM first and drive the campaign forward through the King’s visit and beyond to a winning referendum in the very near future.  

We thank them both for everything they have done to date to help move the country towards a republic. They remain committed to the movement and to an Aussie Head of State and I look forward to their ongoing support.

We’ve announced today the elections process will commence in the next week or so to elect our board and fill these positions.

If you have board or committee experience and are passionate about the republic, then please consider applying.

Now putting that to one side, I must say it’s fantastic to be here tonight and to meet you all. It’s been a few years since I’ve been to Perth, and the city keeps growing and becoming more lovely each time I get to visit.

I’ve been lucky enough to visit WA and whole range of towns from Carnarvon, out to Kalgoorlie, Margaret River, and I’ve done the drive passed Wave Rock down to Albany, up to Norseman and across the Nullarbor. And I always look forward to coming back to WA.  

I’ve met some really friendly locals too who have come over and chatted to me about the ARM t-shirt. They’ve been keen to hear about our plans for the republic and to let me know they are supporters, which is great.

But, it’s not surprising. Our membership is growing and our support in the community is continuing to build every day. Our latest polling says there is only 8% of the country who are rusted on supporters of the monarchy, while over 60% are supporters of the republic.

We’ll be focusing our campaign on the 20-30% of folks out there who haven’t quite made up there mind just yet. When people learn about our current system of government and are reminded, or learn for the first time the Charles is our Head of State, they overwhelmingly swing towards supporting a republic.

And that’s because they don’t see Charles and Camilla as symbols of Australia. Most people just see them as irrelevant foreigners, rich celebrities, who have nothing to do with Australia.

And for the most part, they’re right. The Royals are irrelevant.

Aussies see rising interest rates and cost of living, and know the Monarch can’t possibly relate. They look to their neighbours to find Indigenous, multicultural and European Australians, and know the Monarch isn’t representative. They question politics and media with levels of distrust on the rise, and know the Monarch is gifted power and privilege by birth without democracy, accountability or transparency. No election, no endorsement – just here it is it’s yours for life.

But in a republic, they see a better way. A modern, democratic system, not with royalty or politicians at its heart, but with Aussies at its heart.

As Aussie republic isn’t about the royals, it’s about us – Australia – and who and what we want to be going forward. It’s about our place in the world and about the positive benefits we can achieve with full independence.

An Australian Head of State will have a positive economic impact on the nation. Like Charles does for the UK, an Aussie Head of State can market our nation on the world stage. They can promote our tourism, businesses and industry.

They make the pitch for Aussie products and services on international trips. They can champion local businesses and charities, and this economic activity will flow on to Aussie industries and families.

Our King and his Governor-General can’t or won’t do that for us. In fact, our future King, William, has directly lobbied against Australia hosting events, trying to curry favour for the UK. This isn’t a fair outcome for our country.

It’s time we made Australia an equal. It’s time we had someone to stand up for our own people, jobs, businesses and economy in international relations. Someone who can open doors and hold their own with world leaders to put Australia in the box seat for events, tourism and trade. We need to remove the Royal handbrake on our economy and opportunity.

There are both practical and symbolic reasons to support a republic.

On the practical side, our Head of State needs to walk into rooms with Kings, Queens, Presidents and other Heads of State, and put Australia on the map.

Advocate for Australia as a destination for tourism and events. Promote Australian interests around the globe and command our military.

Champion Australian industry and trade, and sell our products and services to the world. Safeguard our Constitution. Represent our people and showcase Aussie talent at home and abroad.

From a practical point of view, we'll also be tidying up the Constitution and defining the powers of our leaders, including writing the Prime Minister into our founding document, while also severing that last tie to the British by removing the Monarchy, including the King's power to veto legislation.

On the symbolic side, it'll be an Aussie who takes the chair as Head of State – not a foreigner 17,000 kilometres away.

It won't be someone who's grown up in castles and palaces waiting for their time to inherit wealth and power, but rather an Aussie who's had to work their way up in life and is elected on merit, because of the skills and experience they have, not appointed because they were born.

Most of us have had to work hard our whole lives to get where we are. We studied, we trained, we learnt on the job and we put up with customers and bosses we hated to pay our mortgages and put food on our tables.

That's the person I want standing up for me and representing me - because they understand what I've been though. And it's an experience a long way removed from silver spoons, 500 servants and $37 billion property empire.

I grew up in a regional town the son of hardworking parents – a coal miner and a pharmacy assistant, who went onto run their own small businesses. They worked hard to succeed. Nothing was given to them, they weren’t gifted anything. They had to work for it, like the vast majority of Aussies have – and very much unlike our current Head of State.

The Australian Head of State will be one of us, the first among equals. Gifted power to exercise on our behalf for a limited time; a power which can be taken back. Of, by, for the people – strengthening our democracy.

We’ve been out talking to Aussies about what they want to see in a republic and Aussie Head of state.

Aussies have told us they want a Head of State who:

·       Is an Aussie.

·       Is elected on merit.

·       Serves five year fixed terms with a maximum of two terms.

·       Acts on the advice of the Government and is mostly ceremonial in nature with limited powers to ensure the smooth operation of government and the parliament.

·       Does not have a political mandate and isn't responsible for setting policy and laws - they will leave that to the Prime Minister to continue to do.

·       Is Commander in Chief of the ADF.

·       Works full-time and is fully-committed and loyal to Australia and only Australia.

·       Is held to account through elections and institutions such as the NACC and the Parliament. And, who is transparent and answerable to the people.

·       They've also told us they don't want a US-style Executive President where the functions of Head of State and Head of Government are combined - they'd prefer an Aussie version of the Irish Model. 

Australians have told us the priority is to ensure our ongoing stability - and we agree 100%! We want to take what we've got and strengthen it.

Aussies are telling us they want:

·       stay in the Commonwealth – like 36 of the 56 nations (64%) which are republics; 41 have their own Heads of State who aren’t Charles. 6 of the 15 which do call him Head of State have plans to become a republic which would take it to 75% republics and 84% with their own Heads of State.  

·       keep AUKUS and our defence and economic partnerships and alliances in place, including with the Brits.

·       the Westminster system to stay in place with a strengthened rule of law and responsible government thanks to bringing the Head of State into the accountability framework - unlike the King who sits outside it in our current system.

·       Like the Irish, they want the PM to stay on as Head of Government and keep setting the laws and administering the country.

·       And, they want our officials to swear allegiance to Aussies and our best interests – not to a foreign king!

Now, the question on everyone’s lips, following the Voice is how can we make this happen?

I’ve been developing a new process which has five stages and I wanted to share it with you tonight. ARM is a people based movement and it’s you our members who help shape policy, so please let me know your thoughts on it.

The first stage is an education campaign to let people know what options are available if we were to become a republic. That's direct election, parliamentary appointment or a hybrid model and the minimalist or revolutionary changes which could be made. We will let people know it doesn’t have to be an American President, but rather an Australian built model – fit for our Aussie needs.

The Parliament would then ask the ABS to hold an online survey, like the Census and Same Sex Marriage Survey. This would ask Aussies which model they'd like to see if we became a republic.

The third stage is all about public consultation and bring people along for the ride by getting their ownership and involvement in the process and design. The Parliament would be tasked with nationwide consultation and an inquiry process, where all Australians could make submissions on the shape of the republic. It would be a non-partisan committee made up of members of parliament and senators from all states and territories, all parties and the crossbench, republic supporters, undecideds and monarchists. They would be asked to design the new republic and the changes required to the Constitution through public consultation on the people's chosen model.

ARM would then inherit that model and campaign and consult nationwide to achieve a double majority yes vote.

The final stage – the most important stage – is the people's say on the people's model - that is a referendum on the republic. 

This is just a draft and I welcome any thoughts on this process. Please feel free to ask about it or share thoughts tonight or get in touch via info@republic.org.au.

Now, I hope you can tell I’m excited about the prospects of a republic. I’m incredibly optimistic, because this is the moment for an Australian republic.

This is the moment for our children and grandchildren.

This is the moment for democracy and choice.

This is the moment for taking the reins of our own destiny, charting our own course and starting the next chapter in our ongoing story.  

So if you believe in a republic and support an Aussie Head of State, this is the moment to join, encourage friends and family to join, and make contributions or ask family and friends to make contributions to the ARM to help us run our campaign.

This is the moment because we have the support, the campaign, the process and roadmap and organisation to make it happen!

We’ve learnt lessons from ’99, same sex marriage and the voice, and have built those lessons into our campaign plans.

We also have a significant amount of non-partisan or bipartisan support across the Parliament.

Plus, on the horizon is a great big spotlight which will be shone on the royals when they visit in October. It will be the moment for Australia to ask itself whether the British Royals really represent a modern Australian democracy. And the follow up question – what are the alternatives? And, we’ll be there to help answer those questions.  

The visit will kickstart our campaign and will put as front and centre on the national stage.

With your support I know we can make it happen, because this is the moment.

Thank you for your ongoing membership and support of the ARM.

Thanks to Bodhi and the WA Branch Council for hosting us tonight.

Thank you for coming tonight.

I’m more than happy to take your questions.