Australians for Constitutional Monarchy

Paul Keating says Australians must remove the Crown – their oldest institution - from the constitutional system and shred their Australian flag so that they may be part of Asia.

The former prime minister gives no evidence that the governments and peoples of Asia either expect this or that there would be any advantage in doing so. 

Indeed, it is more likely that changing the constitution, abandoning our allegiance to the throne and shredding the national flag in such a craven and infantile act merely to curry favour with foreign powers might receive the contempt which it would so obviously deserve.

When told by the ABC’s Leigh Sales that a lot of Australians aren't sold on this prescription, he leans forward and aggressive barks this order:

"They have to get sold on it.”

They have to get sold on it.

 In 1996, Mr Keating lost the Australian general election in a landslide.

[This is an extract from the 730 program broadcast on the ABC's national television network on 7 November 2011]