Excitement about The Queen and CHOGM

There is much excitement here about the visit by HM The Queen. She comes of course as Queen of Australia, so it’s the Australian government who have made all the arrangements for her programme. I have just come from a reception at the Parliament in Canberra where Her Majesty met Australians from many walks of life. It was a beautiful occasion with moving speeches by PM Julia Gillard, Opposition Leader Tony Abbott and Her Majesty and a stunning performance by Aboriginal singer Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu. Yesterday people crowded the shores of Lake Burley Griffin to watch her sail past on her way from the Governor General’s residence to Canberra’s famous Floriade flower show.

It is clear from everyone I talk to, and from the media coverage, that the Queen is held in great respect and affection in Australia. Even among those who support a republic.   Most political leaders here seem to say that the debate is off the table for the present. And, according to the polls, support for the monarchy is at its highest level for many years. When I was on the ABC breakfast news earlier this week, I was asked what I thought about the constitutional monarchy versus republic debate. I was happy to reply that it wasn’t appropriate for the British High Commissioner to have a view on this: it was entirely a matter for Australians.

The Queen travels to Brisbane and Melbourne next week, and then on to Perth for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM). I will be heading there too this weekend. Prime Minister David Cameron will be leading a high level UK team including Foreign Secretary William Hague, Commonwealth Minister Lord Howell, and Trade Minister Stephen Green. That shows the importance the UK attaches to the meeting.

The Commonwealth is a remarkable, unique institution. I first came across it some 30 years ago, when I was lucky enough to get a Commonwealth youth exchange scholarship to send some time living with a Chinese family in Hong Kong. That experience rather set the course for my life, as I have spent much of my career in Asia.

The 54 countries gathering in Perth are a remarkably diverse group: rich developed countries like Australian and Britain; some of the poorest countries in Africa; huge countries like India with more than a billion people; and tiny island nations from the Pacific and Caribbean. Their shared history gives them some similarities in their political, legal and education systems. And they share the values of democracy, human rights and good governance, although the Commonwealth could do much more in standing up for those values in order to remain relevant . This meeting in Perth could be a defining moment for the organisation. We very much hope to see the Commonwealth adopt the ambitious recommendations coming out of an Eminent Persons Group report, for a new Charter of Commonwealth values, and the appointment of a Commissioner for Democracy and the Rule of Law.