Our goals: a real republic, real reforms

The Real Republic Australia advocates for a range of Constitutional reforms that will deliver better and more efficient and effective government that benefits all Australians:

  • an Australian republic with a head of state elected directly by Australians — not selected for them by politicians. 

  • investing in an elected head of state responsibility for overseeing appointments to anti-corruption agencies and transparency measures at the federal level – ending the current ‘Caesar judging Caesar’ situation in which politicians appoint those who are meant to keep their activities and behaviour in check

  • Constitutional recognition of First Nations people,

  • Constitutional recognition of local government,

  • fixed and synchronised four-year terms for both house of our Federal Parliament,

  • breaking the Constitutional nexus governing the relative sizes of both houses of our parliament and reducing the number of Senators in each state while maintaining two Senators for the Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory,

  • applying the casual vacancy system to the House of Representatives to reduce the number of costly by-elections,

  • making the process for holding a referendum more democratic, and

  • acknowledging the views of NT and ACT voters in both parts of the ‘double majority’ needed to pass a referendum question.

The core issue in the public debate on altering our Constitution for Australia to become a republic is the model to be put to voters at any referendum.

We cannot allow a repeat of the events of 1999 where the seeds of defeat were sown by the very referendum question placed before Australian voters. 

We know that in November 1999 a minimalist model that failed to offer direct election of our head of state was rejected even though all reputable opinion polls at the time showed a majority of Australians wanted a republic. 

What they didn’t want was the “politicians’ republic” forced on them which gave them no say in who might be their head of state. 

It is more than 20 years since we last considered this issue as a nation. 

Let us learn from past mistakes and make sure the Australian people are central to an inclusive process that allows them to vote on the model that they want — a directly elected head of state — and to deliver other real reforms to our Constitution. 

 

David Muir AM

Chair

Real Republic Australia