The Royal Family has been in the news lately amid speculation that Prince Charles is preparing to take over from his mother, Queen Elizabeth, who, at 87, is beginning to feel the weight of her years. If this speculation is accurate, the Queen would remain the titular head of state of Britain and the Commonwealth, including Canada, and Charles would become Prince Regent, taking care of the various duties that come with being monarch.
Several Canadian constitutional experts have offered opinions on whether such a change would fit with Canadian law and what might be required to accommodate a Prince Regent. But the better question for Canada is to ask why we should not simply cut the cord with Britain and say goodbye forever to the monarchy, an undemocratic, elitist institution at the pinnacle of a hierarchical class society.
Stephen Harper has used his years as prime minister to plump for the monarch and promote the royal title in Canadian life. It’s a quaint idea and a futile one. There was a time in Canadian life when the ties to Britain and the monarch were solid but that time is long past. Polls over the years have shown increasing support among Canadians – about four in 10 – for having our own head of state. That this number will continue to grow is beyond question. Harper, if he wants to secure a place in history as more than another Joe, should lead the charge to sever, not save, our ties with the British Crown.
Why cut the monarchy loose? There are many reasons, but here are a few. The Queen is only referred to as the Queen of Canada when she’s in Canada. The rest of the time she’s the Queen of England or Britain, and rightly so. She lives there. The Brits certainly don’t think of her as the Queen of Canada. She is their Queen, she is one of them and they are of no mind to share her, except perhaps as an agent of British diplomacy and trade. When the Queen or other members of the Royal Family make official visits to other states, they represent and advance the interests of Britain, not Canada.
But the most important reason to cut with the monarchy is this: The British Crown is anathema to Canadian aspirations of a society based on merit, hard work and democracy, regardless of race, colour or religion. In Britain it is the prerogative of a single family to produce a head of state who also becomes the head of the Church of England (and the Crown of Canada, Australia and a whack of other former colonies). Canada deserves better. Every Canadian child should know from infancy that he or she could become our head of state – not governor-general, a second-in-command, but head of state, regardless of whether his or her name is Gouzenko or Delgato, Cohen or Khan.
Replacing the Crown with our own head of state vested with similar powers need not be long or complicated, but it should be done. The Queen is getting old and the time is right. And think about this: Sometime this summer, the Duchess of Cambridge will have a baby who in time will automatically become our head of state. Is that right? We are an independent country. Aren’t we?
