A Republican Revolution?: the Power of Parliament to Abolish the Monarchy

Abstract

New Zealand becoming a republic is widely thought to be merely a matter of time. Recently the issue of becoming a republic has returned to public debate, with the consideration and rejection by the House of Representatives of the Head of State (Referenda) Bill of Keith Locke MP. The power of Parliament to abolish the monarchy seems to be generally assumed. But in 1993 Sir Robin Cooke, prompted by Prime Minister Jim Bolger’s public advocacy of republicanism, wrote an essay suggesting that Parliament did not have that power. Abolishing the monarchy, he thought, would be a revolution: a breach of legal continuity. Sir Robin made two arguments. The first argument related to the provisions of the Constitution Act 1986. The second was based on the “fundamental” nature of the Crown. I consider these arguments in turn and conclude that Parliament does have the power to abolish the monarchy.