2 ms·
The Monarch has tremendous reserve powers in an unwritten constitution like the UK’s, and has not been shy of abusing them elsewhere like the Australian constit
by fmajid 3y ago
The Monarch has tremendous reserve powers in an unwritten constitution like the UK’s, and has not been shy of abusing them elsewhere like the Australian constitutional crisis of 1975, essentially a coup against a democratically elected government. In addition to the £600M inheritance tax break Chuck the Third got on his private wealth, the Palace is exempted from racial discrimination laws among many others, and well into the 1970s it was their official policy not to hire black or brown people for anything more exalted than cleaning toilets:
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/jun/02/buckingham-palace-banned-ethnic-minorities-from-office-roles-papers-reveal https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/jun/02/buckingham-p...
(They still refuse transparency on that, so it might still be ongoing for all I know)
As for democracy, the arrest of Republic protesters during the coronation shows how hollow that claim is. The UK is still a nation managed for the benefit of its feudal elite, as seen with institutions like leasehold or the fact there is no property tax on their holdings.
You’d have a much less risible case with the Scandinavian or Dutch monarchies.