The flurry of attention to the Palace Letters continues. In its aftermath, this thoughtful piece below about what the reveal might mean for the republic looks at the campaign in the cold light of day. WfaAR agrees. What happened 45 years ago between a tightly knit group of people both in Yarralumla and Buckingham Palace – even with primary sources now to hand – is too arcane to resonate with todays campaign and how most voters will react to any proposal for a Republic in the 2020s. In fact, Crispin Hull argues the letters could be used to support the case against a republic particularly among Coalition supporters. He also makes some good suggestions for how to depoliticise the role of Head of State and how a new republic might operate in practice under a new, streamlined Constitution – click on link for full article. [“Republic cause isn’t helped by reveal of Palace Letters” by Crispin Hull, The Canberra Times online, 18 July 2020]
Woman for an Australian Republic, Adelaide Ironside, republican poet and artist 1831-1867
Self portrait 1855, Newcastle Art Gallery NSW
