The Republic of Australia?

Quick post on Aussie PM Kevin Rudd's assertion that it was still his intention to remove the Queen as Head of State and declare Australia as a republic.

While I'm no real fan of the royal family - I'm not particularly bothered about keeping them after independence in Scotland - I thought Gordon Brown's comments on the idea were interesting.

Asked about Rudd's intentions, Brown responded by saying that the question of monarchy was a matter for the Australian people.

How about that - an issue about the constitutional future of a country left to the people of that country to decide upon.

If only we'd worked out that level of democracy here.