Coronation of King Charles III: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s anti-Royal comments re-emerge

Anthony Albanese’s anti-royal past has been revealed as he enjoys a weekend in London to attend King Charles III’s coronation with a bevy of notable Australians.

In 1999, the prime minister told a Republic referendum committee that young people “just can’t identify with Queen Elizabeth or Prince Charles.”

Mr Albanese, who was an MP at the time, said the time had ‘well come’ for Australia to set aside the monarchy and stand on its own two feet.

“It is very important that we can make progress,” he told parliament.

“Young people in this country simply cannot identify with Queen Elizabeth or Prince Charles as our head of state.

‘If you travel abroad, it is considered quite bizarre and embarrassing.’

Albanese warned that if Australia remained a monarchy, students and young people would see it as a missed opportunity in 30 or 40 years.

“I urge people to support the republic and support it now because it is inevitable – everyone accepts that. We have to do it now so we can do it with pride,” he said.

His speech came just months before Australians were due to vote in a referendum on whether the nation should remain a monarchy or become a republic.

Anthony Albanese will attend King Charles III’s coronation in London this weekend

Mr Albanese (pictured with King Charles III in September) told a Republic referendum committee in 1999 that young people ‘just can’t identify with Queen Elizabeth or Prince Charles’

Fast forward to 2023, where Mr Albanese declined to give a direct answer to whether Australians should swear their allegiance to the monarch.

The prime minister was asked on Monday whether Australians could be expected to support the new monarch and whether he would invite the king on a royal tour.

“I would like the king to come to Australia. I have invited the King… One of the things that naturally happens when we are sworn in as Members of Parliament is that you swear allegiance to the Crown,” he said on Monday.

Albanese said the coronation was an “important event” and the royal family would always be welcome in Australia.

It comes after the prime minister was accused of making a major ‘royal blunder’ after failing to formally invite King Charles to Australia.

He gave an open invitation when he met Australia’s new head of state in London at Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral in September.

The prime minister described his meeting with the king as “a warm get-together” and that “this is a time of respect, that’s what is needed here.”

Australians have been called upon to shout in their homes during King Charles’s coronation (the Royal is pictured in Darwin in 2018)

The Prime Minister was accused of making a major ‘royal blunder’ after failing to formally invite King Charles to Australia after visiting the Royal in September (pictured)

Mr Albanese, a Republican, has yet to fulfill that promise with an official invitation to the king to visit Australia for the 17th time, his first as king.

According to royal biographer Robert Jobson, it is customary for the monarch to visit Australia within 12 months of his coronation.

Mr Albanese has previously indicated it is unlikely there will be a public referendum on whether Australia will become a republic until its second Labor term.

In the wake of Queen Elizabeth III’s death, a survey found that the majority of Australians were in favor of Australia remaining part of the monarchy.

A Roy Morgan poll found that among 1,012 people, 60 percent wanted to remain a monarchy, while 40 percent wanted to be a republic.

More women than men supported the monarchy, 66-34 for women and 54-46 for men, while younger Australians were the strongest supporter of a republic, with 52 per cent of those under 35 in favor of the move.