Australian officials have hinted that plans to remove King Charles III from office have been shelved.
Holding a referendum on establishing a republic has been a longtime objective of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
A minister has informed the local media that such a vote is “not a priority” and that there is “no timeline” for it.
The authorities announced last week that the monarch would be arriving “later this year.”
A government spokesman told The Australian that the prime minister had a “warm relationship” with Charles. Buckingham Palace has not yet confirmed the trip.
In a separate referendum last year, Australians rejected a proposal to provide Indigenous people greater political rights, leading to the government’s loss and the remarks that followed.
All six states rejected a constitutional amendment that would have acknowledged First Nations people. Supporters said it would have started a new age, while others feared it would have caused division.
A government official told The Australian that the matter was “not a priority” at the moment when asked over the weekend about the government’s intentions for another referendum, specifically on becoming a republic.
When asked to elaborate on Monday’s ABC interview, Assistant Minister for the Republic Matt Thistlethwaite said that “no timeline” was in place. Rather, he emphasized the need to address concerns related to the expense of living.
High inflation and increasing interest rates have been having an impact on individuals throughout the world, including Australia.
Mr. Thistlethwaite, however, said that he was “not giving up” and that, “longer term,” the Australian government still intended to secede from the British royal family.
How much longer will Charles be king of fifteen nations?
In a 1999 referendum, the people of the nation decided against severing relations with the monarchy. In the twenty-five years that followed, requests for a new vote persisted.
Mr. Albanese has already said that the establishment of a republic in Australia is “inevitable” and has designated Mr. Thistlethwaite as the first minister in Australia to be specifically charged with this goal.
Hugh Jackman, an Australian actor, shared the view that severing ties with the British royal family was inevitable given his country’s “evolution” last year when he spoke to the BBC.
While wishing the royal family “all the best,” the X-Men actor clarified that he had “no ill-will” towards the monarch.
Chris Hipkins, the current head of the opposition party and a former prime minister of New Zealand, has said that he is a Republican who thinks his nation would “ideally” break away from the monarchy in the future.
In 2021, Barbados chose to remain a member of the Commonwealth even after it deposed Elizabeth II as head of state, becoming the world’s newest republic.
While speaking at the formal event, Charles—then the Prince of Wales—acknowledged the “appalling atrocity of slavery” that the island of Cuba endured while it was a British colony.
Prior to Barbados, Mauritius (1992) was the most recent country to depose a British ruler.
