AUSTRALIA now seems more likely to become a republic after the surprise move yesterday of a key party leader to back plans to transfer Queen Elizabeth's key roles to a senior judge.
The National Party leader and deputy prime minister, Mr Tim Fischer, has agreed to remove all reference to the queen in Australia's constitution to fit his new minimalist" model for a republic.
Mr Fischer, considered one of the most dedicated monarchists in Canberra, broke the summertime political stupor and reignited the republican debate singlehanded from his farm near Wagga Wagga, New South Wales. The plan is significant because it is the first time a senior member of the National Party, which holds power federally in coalition with the Liberal Party, has supported any move towards republicanism.
Mr Fischer wants his party to back the plan only if the people vote for a republic later this year. "If after a fair dinkum debate the people of Australia opt to go for a republic, then this is the model worthy of consideration," he said.
His plan involves the chief justice of the High Court taking over the queen's power to appoint or dismiss the governor general on the advice of the prime minister. But constitutional experts say Mr Fischer's suggestion also to remove the monarch's name from the constitution would involve a substantial rewriting of the founding document.
The Prime Minister, Mr John Howard, is in favour of retaining the constitutional monarchy and has yet to implement an election promise to hold a people's convention and vote on the republic in 1997.
Most republicans gave the Fischer plan a qualified thumbs up, but most monarchists rejected it as unworkable and unconstitutional. The chairman of the Australian Republican Movement, Mr Malcolm Turnbull, said that while he supported the move, retaining the title governor general would be a confusing hangover from the monarchy.
Legal experts said plans to have a judge meddle in politics were at odds with the separation of powers entrenched in the constitution.
The leader of the Labour opposition, Mr Kim Beazley, called Mr Howard to go ahead and Australians to vote between a republic and monarchy.