Month: November 2007
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New Hope For Australian Republic
Australians will have another chance to vote on whether to become a republic as a result of the Labour Party gaining a 22-seat majority in the general election. New Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has promised a referendum. Australia shares an hereditary head of state with Britain. In the 1999 referendum Australians voted 55 to 45…
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Her Majesty’s Government Defends Her Majesty’s Tax Break
Britain is resisting a European Commission plan that would reduce the £500,000 paid in farm subsidies to hereditary head of state Elizabeth Windsor. The Commission wants to slash subsidies from taxpayers to the owners of big farms in order to rebut claims that the Common Agriculture Policy favours the rich. But a spokesperson for the…
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Fine for Insult To “Prince”
Two Spanish cartoonists have been fined £2000 each on a charge of insulting Felipe Bourbon, who is heir to the office of head of state. The charge arose from a law intended to boost the birth rate by paying cash to families for adopting or giving birth to a child. Guillermo Torres and Manel Fontevilla…
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BBC’s Police Powers Attacked
The British Broadcasting Corp. (BBC) has been described as “a state agency with police powers to collect a tax”. This unusually honest description of the media giant was made by BSkyB Chief Executive James Murdoch at the Monaco Media Forum and reported by the Financial Times Criticising these powers Mr. Murdoch said that funding of…
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Hereditary Legislators Keep Seats
New Prime Minister Gordon Brown has announced plans for a number of reforms to Britain’s constitution. But he did not include reform of the second chamber of Parliament. This means that legislators-for-life, bishops, legislators appointed by the main political parties, hereditary legislators and legislators who have bought their seats, none of whom are accountable to…