Senator BOB BROWN (Tasmania—Leader of the Australian Greens) (16:14): I give the concurrence and support of the Greens to this motion recognising such a noble and dignified lady and globally known personage as Her Majesty the Queen, whose 60th year of accession to the throne was noted yesterday. I think I might be one of the few people in this parliament who remembers the death of King George VI. Senator Boswell: I remember, I was there. Senator BOB BROWN: Yes, Senator Boswell. I said one of the few. I join you. I do not see too many other hands raised. I remember well the news coming through of the death of the king and the enormous sympathy for the burden that came upon the young then Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip as they made their way back to Britain. Within a couple of years they went on to fulfil the engagement that was aborted by the death of the king and that was their trip here to Australia. I remark on the extraordinary reception in this parliament last year when Her Majesty showed extraordinary resilience in an event that put huge pressure on her and the prince. That is something we must think about should they visit our shores again. They are an aged couple of very gentle people who I think should not be subject to hours of presentations from people wanting photographs and a moment of their time when they should be given much more time to relax after extraordinary lifetimes of service to their communities. That said, I also am a republican, as Sir Zelman Cowen became during his lifetime. I have changed from being a monarchist to a republican. I do believe this great nation has many Australians who have the qualities and the wherewithal to be our head of state. Her Majesty is the Queen of the United Kingdom and she is only the Queen of Australia when she is here, which has become a very, very rare occurrence. I think there must be days, weeks and maybe months that pass where her mind rarely, if ever, devolves upon the affairs of Australia and the people of Australia and the events that are unfolding in this country. It is time that we matured—as Jamaica is doing at the moment, as the latest in a long stream of countries inevitably moving towards appointing their own head of state—to something similar to Ireland. We should have a head of state who comes from the extraordinary wealth of human talent within our own ranks. I think I have a strong component of romanticism within my own soul, but the practicalities and my fealty to this country and to the people of this country say that when we do move to become a republic—it is an inevitability—it will be a great day of maturation for us as a people. That said, I congratulate Her Majesty and Prince Philip for a long life of service. I wish them well in the years that they will be with us and I hope that they find a little more time to reflect upon that life, to relax in peace and equanimity in the years that they are granted yet to live. Question agreed to.