Harry and Meghan’s royal tell-all may boost calls for Australian republic

Republicans hope Prince Harry and Meghan Markle revelations increase appetite for an Australian head of state.

Queen Elizabeth II talks as part of a Commonwealth Day broadcast on the BBC on MOnday, hours before Harry and Meghan’s bombshell Oprah interview. Picture: Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

Federal parliamentarians who back the republic movement hope Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s explosive interview will increase the nation’s appetite for an Australian head of state.

Labor republic spokesman Matt Thistlethwaite said the interview highlighted the fact the British monarchy was “completely removed for modern-day Australians”.

He said he hoped the interview would reignite the national debate about the country’s ties to the monarchy.

“If Harry and Meghan can cut ties with the royal family then why can’t we vote democratically,” Mr Thistlethwaite said.

“I’m hoping it will renew interest among Australians about our future and ties to the monarchy and trigger us to have a mature conversation about where we’re headed as a nation, indigenous recognition, the Uluru statement of the heart, a voice to parliament and selecting one of us to be head of state.”

Australians’ support for the monarchy is often affected by timing and events which influence public sentiment. A 2018 Newspoll conducted one month after Prince Harry and Ms Markle’s visit to Australia in October 2018 revealed support for a republic fell to its lowest level in 25 years — with ­almost half of Australian voters opposed to cutting ties with the British monarchy.

Mr Thistlethwaite said Prince Harry and Ms Markle explaining why they turned their backs on the royal family could be leveraged by Australia’s republican movement.

“When you get these crises or issue in the royal family, it does result in a bounce of support for the Australian Republican Movement and a renewed conversation about our ties (to) the monarchy,” he said.

Liberal MP Jason Falinski, co-chair of the parliamentary friendship group for an Australian head of state, said the interview could add to momentum for an Australian head of state.

“It reminds Australians that this is a British institution which no longer plays as big a role in our national life as it used to,” he told The Australian.

Australians for Constitutional Monarchy national convenor David Flint said the ­interview had “no relevance” to changing the country’s constitution.