Australian Peers

Australian Peers

Australians were previously eligible to receive British Imperial Honours. Such honours included peerages, which originally were all hereditary and automatically meant membership of the House of Lords. Neither of these is necessarily the case any more.

Peerage titles awarded to Australians included some distinctly Australian titles, such as Viscount Bruce of Melbourne. Imperial Honours were recommended to the sovereign by the Prime Minister of Australia, an Australian state premier, or sometimes by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Despite the awarding of some peerages with specifically Australian connexions, many Australian peers hold titles which do not derive from Australia, and which have simply devolved on persons who have emigrated to Australia or their descendants. Further, some Australians have been awarded peerages in recognition of services rendered in the United Kingdom, rather than Australia.

The practice of awarding British Imperial Honours for services rendered in Australia generally came to a halt in 1975 when Queen Elizabeth II, on the advice of the Prime Minister, Gough Whitlam, instituted an entirely Australian Honours System, although individual states such as Queensland continued to recommend Imperial Honours for some time. British-based Australians continue to be eligible for nomination to Imperial Honours, including peerages.