UK in transition: The view from Australia

For those of us who are citizens of the United Kingdom it is a seismic event when our Queen dies.

But it is easy to forget that the Queen is not just the Queen of the United Kingdom, but also the Queen of the Commonwealth including the nation of Australia. The Queen was the Head of State for Australia – as the new King Charles now is. Her death was treated with almost the same level of mourning and publicity as in the UK. Indeed, the Australian Prime Minister went even further and announced a public holiday for all of Australia on 22 September. Parliament was suspended for a fortnight.

Some might be surprised to see just how much the relationship of sovereign and country is significant in Australia. As a Scot in Australia, it has been a pleasant surprise to be given a day off for the Queen’s official birthday. Soon we will have banknotes and coins with the imprint of King Charles. In church on Sunday, we even had the UK national anthem played! Memorial services were held in all the cities and the bells tolled 96 times in Sydney Anglican cathedral in the centre of the city – one for each year of the Queen’s life.