Malcolm Turnbull's unwise description of himself in London as a "very strong Elizabethan" was just a turn of phrase (no doubt fine-tuned with his speech-writers beforehand), which was called into play to deal with the dilemma of how republican political leaders should carry themselves when dealing with their monarchs.
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In this case, how a republican Australian prime minister, who led the Yes campaign in 1999 and is endlessly described as an "avowed" or "fervent" republican, should carry himself in his dealings with the British Queen who is also the Australian head of state. Like other republicans, especially leaders, they always risk being seen as unenthusiastic if they are calm and considered in their utterings and demeanour but fawning and hypocritical if they are seen to be too enthusiastic.
Nevertheless, Turnbull will now be remembered for his use of this phrase just as the monarchist Sir Robert Menzies is often held up to ridicule (mindlessly according to Allan Martin, his biographer) for his gushing address to the Queen during her 1963 royal tour to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Canberra. To express his admiration for the Queen, Menzies famously quoted the lines from Thomas Ford's poem "There is a Lady Sweet and Kind" which read "I did but see her passing by and yet I love her till I die". Turnbull now will be lampooned just as Menzies has been.
Turnbull's situation is an example of a real and common dilemma. Remember that all nine Australian political leaders are now declared republicans. Though the state and territory chief ministers face the same dilemma less frequently, they still do so regularly during royal visits of various kinds. It may be personally easy but it can be politically difficult.
It is not just a matter of the personal opinions of the prime minister, nor is it irrelevant what he thinks, as one letter writer suggests, because leaders represent the Australian community not themselves. If that were the case the prime minister should also represent the views of the more than half of the Australian community who are republicans.
It is not just a question of social niceties but of mutually respectful formalities (as is the case when meeting other world leaders like Donald Trump). Formally the Queen and her prime ministers and premiers are not equals, so the tone of such meetings must be hard to get right. It must be much easier to establish the right tone when Australian political leaders meet the Queen's representatives in Australia, the Governor-General and state governors. At least, unlike female leaders, men like Turnbull are not expected to curtsy although they do bow slightly.
Turnbull has long expressed the view that there should not be another republic referendum during the Queen's reign. Although he has made that clear since 1999 I have always understood his position to be a pragmatic one based on his judgement that such a referendum would never pass.
In that case Turnbull should tell the Queen (perhaps he did so in private) and the general public in Britain and Australia something along these lines: "If I thought I could win a republic referendum now I would try to call one immediately, but I don't think it can win at the moment with the Queen on the throne, so I won't even try." That's a much more positive and honest stance to take than his present explanation, which shifts responsibility to the Australian people and comes across as very passive.
Turnbull is only one republican voice, though an influential one. It is up to other republicans, including the leadership of the Australian Republican Movement, to point out the weaknesses of Turnbull's position as it now stands. The movement, , with its 2020 timetable for a plebiscite and 2022 for a referendum, has done that.
At the very least Turnbull should flesh out his position, which is a recipe for endless delay, and say explicitly what he will do, if he is still prime minister, from the moment the Queen is no longer on the throne, and what consultative and other processes, if any, he is prepared to initiate prior to that time. The best comparison is perhaps with Scottish Nationalist leaders for whom the timing of a second independence referendum is a matter of strategy and timing not belief.
It is also up to other republican political leaders, like Opposition Leader Bill Shorten, who is addressing a large Australian Republican Movement gala dinner in Melbourne on July 29, to make their position crystal clear too and to formally advise the Queen and the Governor-General of it.
The Labor Party must be more explicit in words and especially much more energetic in deeds than it has been so far. The republican movement needs more champions at the highest levels if it is to succeed. Shadow Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus has recently criticised Turnbull for "not taking more active steps towards putting Australia on the path towards a republic". Labor doesn't accept Turnbull's cautious talk and should therefore ramp up its campaign for early community consultation and short-term pathways. Shorten has an opportunity now to do this.
Republican political leaders like Turnbull and Shorten should not pussy-foot around the issue any longer. Turnbull has said time and again, in regard to various proposals for constitutional reform including Indigenous recognition, that he is not interested in heroic failures. Fair enough. But he should be interested in straight-talking.
He may not wish to stick his neck out by being crazy brave like Paul Keating, but on the matter of the republic Turnbull needs to be more like Keating and less like Menzies.
John Warhurst is an Emeritus Professor of Political Science at the Australian National University and former chairman of the Australian Republican Movement
