Australia-Canada Relations - Comparison of Australia and Canada - Monarchy

Monarchy

Elizabeth II is the head of state of both Australia and Canada, though her positions as Queen of Canada and Queen of Australia are legally separate; Elizabeth II cannot be advised on national affairs by anyone other than her ministers in the appropriate country, and when acting internally or abroad on the advice of said ministers, she does so as Queen of Canada or Queen of Australia, not as Queen of the United Kingdom. At the federal level, the Queen is represented in Canada by the Governor General (no hyphen), and in Australia by the Governor-General (hyphenated).

Canada discontinued the awarding of British honours to its citizens, establishing the Order of Canada in 1967, earlier than Australia, which introduced its own Order of Australia in 1975, and did not end the awarding of British honours until 1993. The Canadian monarch and Australian monarch, respectively, is sovereign of all Canadian and Australian national honours.

Polls in both countries over previous decades have shown shifts in the popularity of the monarchy, although to date, only Australia has held a national referendum on moving to a republican form of government, in 1999. Although some Canadian politicians, such as John Manley (described as "Canada's Paul Keating") have expressed support for ending the monarchy, it is not the policy of any of the three main federal parties.

Owing to the federal nature of both countries' constitutions, any constitutional change regarding the monarchy would require the consent of each country's states or provinces. In Australia, such a change requires both a majority of those voting throughout the country, and separate majorities in a majority of the states, and the complete abolition of the monarchy would require constitutional reform in each state. In Canada changes to the monarchy require the assent of every province's legislature as well as a majority in the Senate and House of Commons, unlike the usual amending formula which requires the approval of only seven out of ten provinces representing at least 50% of the population. In 1931, King George V appointed the first Australian-born person as Governor-General; Canada did not have a Canadian-born Governor General until 1953.

Further information: Debate on the monarchy in Canada and Republicanism in Australia

Read more about this topic:  Australia-Canada Relations, Comparison of Australia and Canada

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