- 'Commonwealth
of Australia' would be retained as the title of an Australian
republic, and 'President of the Commonwealth of Australia'
would be adopted as the title of an Australian head of
state.
- The
President would be appointed for a non-renewable term
of office of five years by a two-thirds majority vote
in a joint sitting of the Commonwealth Parliament, following
the nomination of a single individual by the Prime Minister.
The requirement of a two-thirds majority of a joint sitting
will mean effectively that there will need to be prior
bi-partisan agreement to the nominee.
- The
President would be an Australian citizen of voting age
and may not hold any other remunerated position while
in office.
- Serving
Commonwealth, State and Territory parliamentarians would
be excluded from nomination as President, and former Commonwealth,
State and Territory parliamentarians would be excluded
from nomination until five years have passed since their
departure from parliament.
- The
Commonwealth Parliament would nominate, by a two-thirds
majority vote in a joint sitting, the office holder(s)
entitled to temporarily perform the duties of President
would circumstance or need arise.
- The
Government supports the appointment of State Governors
to act as President when needed, with those eligible being
from States no longer using the Queen to appoint their
Governors. If no State Governor from a republican State
is available, the President of the Senate should act.
- The
President would have the right to resign. His or her resignation
would be passed to the Speaker of the House of Representatives,
who would convey it to the Parliament. The resignation
of a President would be self-executing, with the Constitution
to provide for an acting President to assume office upon
the resignation of the President.
- The
President would be subject to removal by a two-thirds
majority vote in a joint sitting of the Commonwealth Parliament,
with either House to have the right to initiate the joint
sitting by passing a motion supported by a simple majority
of its members. However, the President's removal would
not be contingent on a specified set of facts, circumstances
or conditions.
- The
President would perform the ceremonial and representational
functions currently performed by the Queen and Governor-General.
- The
President would exercise the powers currently exercised
by the Governor-General under Commonwealth legislation,
on the advice of the Federal Executive Council.
- The
President would exercise all the constitutional powers
currently vested in the Governor-General and, except in
relation to the reserve powers, be expressly required
to act in accordance with Ministerial advice.
- The
reserve powers currently possessed by the Governor-General
would remain with the President, and the Constitution
would provide that the constitutional conventions governing
the exercise of these powers would continue, but the conventions
would not be spelt out. The manner of exercise by the
President of the reserve powers would not be open to challenge
in the courts.
- All
references in the Constitution to the Queen, the Crown
and the Governor-General would be removed.
- The
States would be free to decide their own constitutional
arrangements.
- Australia
would remain a member of the Commonwealth of Nations.
