News from the Centre for Citizenship
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NZ Republic Bill To Be Debated
New Zealanders will be able to vote on whether their country should be freed from feudalism if a Head of State Bill is passed by Parliament. The Bill would require a referendum with three options: a republic with the head of state chosen by Parliament; a republic with a head of state elected by the…
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Andrew Windsor Explains His Role
Andrew Windsor, son of Britain’s hereditary head of state, told the Financial Times in an interview in New York that he had briefed Russian Federation President Dmitry Medvedev for the G20 summit in “five minutes of conversation”. He explained that Medvedev is “young man with no experience of that sort of environment”. Mr. Windsor, who…
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Windsor Charity Under Investigation
The Charity Commission has revealed that it is concerned about the relationship between Charles Windsor and the Prince’s Foundation for the Built Environment, a charity he sponsors. According to the Guardian, the Commission “has now ordered the foundation to explain its trustee decision-making, the activities it undertakes to further its charitable purposes for the public…
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The Rights of the People Have Nowhere To Stand
If Parliament accepts changes to the law proposed by Justice Secretary Jack Straw, some legislators will be free to resign from the House of Lords, hereditary legislators will not be able to hand on their seats to their children and the House will be able to expel legislators for serious misconduct. But the people would…
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Windsor Take Partisan Position
Hereditary head of state Elizabeth Windsor has twice written to the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans, a conservative group within the Anglican Church, to wish it well. The Fellowship is opposed to the ordination as bishops of gay men and lesbians. The British head of state, who is also titular head of the Church of England,…
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Canadian Support for Monarchy Fades
Sixty five per cent of Canadians want their country to end its tie to the British monarchy when Elizabeth Windsor dies, according to a poll by the Globe and Mail newspaper. Seventy per cent of those polled said they felt no personal connection to head of state Windsor or her representative in Canada, the Governor-General.…
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House of Lords: Even Minimal Reform Unlikely Before Election
As a part of a supposedly “radical vision” for Britain the Prime Minister has announced that he intends to ask Parliament to approve a change in the law that would stop the seats of Britain’s 92 hereditary legislators being taken by their children when they die. However, even the introduction of a bill before the…
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Queen’s Counsels Return to New Zealand
New Zealand is again to appoint “queen’s counsels”. This follows the recent replacement of the title with “senior counsel”. According to the Attorney-General the title has been brought back to protect “the essential independence of the inner bar”. The New Zealand Republican Movement described the restoration as “a retrograde act”. The change has also been…
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Windsor Take Up 23%
Charles Windsor, hereditary heir to Britain’s chief public office, increased his direct take from the taxpayers by £575,000 last year, a 23.5% increase in a time of financial crisis. Most of the increase was accounted for by an extra £550,000 spent on travel, including two overseas tours. In all the feudal ruler took £3m from…
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Republican Group Formed in Denmark
The Republican Constitutional Movement has been founded in Denmark to campaign for the end of what is said to be the world’s oldest monarchy. A recent opinion poll suggested that only 15.3% of Danes want a republic. However, 56% of respondents were in favour of revising the constitution. Some republicans see this as a sign…