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Queen absent from new Australian $5
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Posted on Dec 21 2000
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australians decided against dumping Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II as their head of state, but they’ve kicked her off their new $5 bill.
In a break with tradition, the Reserve Bank unveiled a new bill Monday that carries no likeness of Australia’s head of state.
The $5 note is being issued to coincide with Australia’s centennial celebrations — the six original states federated to form Australia on Jan. 1, 1901.
The Reserve Bank said that as the old version of the bill would continue to circulate there was no need to put her on the new note, a limited issue for 2001.
Scrapping the queen from the currency was discussed last year during a divisive debate about Australia becoming a republic and replacing the queen as its head of state with a popularly elected president. A referendum overwhelmingly rejected replacing the queen. The defeat was blamed on disagreement over how to elect an Australian president.
“This is republicanism by stealth,” said prominent monarchist Kerry Jones, who demanded a new batch of bills be printed featuring the queen. “It is an absolute disgrace and the committee that made this decision has to be held accountable because the people of Australia have spoken on what they want.”
Like other former British colonies, Australia retains the British monarch as its head of state.
The new bill features Sir Henry Parkes, a prominent campaigner for federation, and Catherine Helen Spence, a journalist, social reformer and novelist.
