Australians are content with King Charles as their monarch, and support for a republic is at an all-time low, according to a former High Commissioner to the UK.
Speaking to GB News while King Charles and Queen Camilla continue their royal tour of Australia, George Brandis said support for a republic was “feeble”
Charles and Camilla landed in Sydney on Friday night for a nine-day tour marking the first visit to the country by a reigning monarch since 2011.
The royal couple were greeted by local dignitaries and children bearing posies.
King Charles and the Queen are in Australia
Getty
The royal couple’s visit includes a packed schedule of events, such as a public barbecue and appearances at iconic landmarks.
Speaking on the tour and about the mood of Australians in regard to the Royal Family, Brandis told GB News: “King Charles visits Australia as King of Australia, not as King of England. He is your King, but he’s our king as well. Australians know that and most Australians are very happy about that.
“There has been Republican movement in Australia stretching back to the 1970s or even a little earlier than that, and about perhaps 25 years ago, when we had a referendum on the subject, it was fairly strong.
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“But I have to say that I’ve never seen support for the idea of an Australian republic as feeble in my adult lifetime as it is at the moment.
“There was an opinion poll published about a fortnight ago which showed support for Australia becoming a republic at 33 per cent, support for the status quo at 45 per cent, and the rest undecided.
“Now, I don’t remember a time since these polls first began to be taken in the late 1970s when support for a republic was as low as 33 per cent, usually it sits somewhere in the mid-40s.
“That reflects the fact that Australians are sick of this issue. We’ve heard too much about it for so long and we’ve really moved on. It’s very much, I think, yesterday’s issue.”
The Former Ambassador said that Australian’s are “sick” of the debate
GB News
He added: “We feel that we know King Charles very well. He went to school here when he was a teenager, something that obviously meant a great deal to him, and he often reflects on that as a very happy time of his life as a youngster.
“This is his 17th visit. Australians are so familiar with him. They like him. They regard him as ours.
“And, of course, he’s an Englishman, and he lives mostly in England, but Australians have a sense that he is ours as well, but although not an Australian himself, that he is one of us.
“I’m sure that is grounded in the fact that he displays such obvious and enthusiastic affection for Australia and its people.
King Charles and Queen Camilla in Australia for historic tour
Reuters
“The most practical way to judge is to look at the crowds.
“I’m sure, particularly when their majesties take their walk around the Sydney Opera House, as they will do later in the programme, for instance, or when they go to the Australian War Memorial tomorrow, you’ll see very enthusiastic crowds.
“There is deep and abiding affection in Australia for King Charles. People are well aware of how much this country means to him, and that affection is reciprocated.”
