The Order Winter 2013 - Order of Australia Association

10
The Order No. 33, Winter 2013
The royal succession — gender and religion
The issue of Australia’s
becoming a republic has
faded for the time being.
This has not, however, taken
the Royal Family out of
public debate. For years
there has been concern
over the discriminatory
issues of male succession
and restrictions on
religious association.
The Commonwealth of
Nations has addressed both
issues. Now Australia
has responded.
Her Majesty the Queen, Sovereign of
The Order of Australia
Commonwealth and states agree in a hybrid sort of way
The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) has
agreed to a hybrid model to implement the previously
agreed changes to the rules of royal succession in
Australia.
At the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting
in Perth in October 2011, the Prime Ministers of
Commonwealth nations agreed to the proposal by British
Prime Minister David Cameron that the rules for the royal
succession be reformed to allow for succession regardless
of gender and to remove the bar on succession for an heir
and successor of the sovereign who marries a Roman
Catholic.
Under the hybrid model, Australian states may choose
to enact state legislation dealing with the rules of royal
succession. States have agreed that they will ask the
Commonwealth under s.51(38) of the Constitution to enact
legislation and that any state legislation will be consistent
with their requests to the Commonwealth under s.51(38).
All jurisdictions have endorsed the hybrid model,
which means that all jurisdictions will request the
Commonwealth to enact legislation under Section 51 (38)
of the Constitution. Individual states can elect, if they so
choose, to enact also their own legislation.
At a press conference after the COAG meeting, the
Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, said, “ This issue of royal
succession was discussed. This is Australia’s part in
ensuring that, for the future, girls could succeed to become
the monarch in the same way that boys can, that there’s
not discrimination, and that there is no discrimination
against the monarch marrying a Catholic.”
Premier Denis Napthine of Victoria said, “We welcome
the agreed position with regard to royal succession. I think
this provides a sensible way forward for all jurisdictions
to operate under the umbrella of the Commonwealth
constitutional changes.”
. In December at the Council of Australian Governments
meeting the Prime Minister and all Premiers and Chief
Ministers, apart from Queensland Premier Campbell
Newman, agreed to effect these changes under section
51(38) of the Commonwealth Constitution, in which the
states can pass legislation requesting the Commonwealth
to make changes to the law.
Commenting before the April COAG meeting, the
Commonwealth Attorney-General, Mark Dreyfus QC,
said that the Newman Government needed to embrace the
21st century and allow modernisation of the UK’s royal
succession laws, which would do away with the preference
for a male heir and exclusion of Catholics, among other
restrictions.
“These royal succession reforms remove outdated
notions of gender and the religious affiliation of a spouse.
They are long overdue,” he said.
Asked at the press conference if he had changed his
position, Premier Newman said, “The position when we
last met was that we were being asked to refer our powers
to the Commonwealth, as I recall.
“Sadly on that day I think many people seemed to
misunderstand where I was coming from. My Government
moved this year, some weeks ago, in fact a couple of
months ago, to introduce legislation to ensure what was
agreed at CHOGM could be implemented in Queensland.
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