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Australia Won't Put King Charles On Its Bank Notes

The British monarchy will no longer feature on Australian bank notes. The Australian central bank announced last week that the new $5 bill, which previously had an image of Queen Elizabeth, will not have one of her son, King Charles III. Instead, an indigenous design will be on the bank note. Charles will still be on coins that previously bore the image of Queen Elizabeth.

"This decision by the Reserve Bank Board follows consultation with the Australian government, which supports this change," the Reserve Bank of Australia said in a statement. "The Bank will consult with First Australians in designing the $5 banknote. The new banknote will take a number of years to be designed and printed. In the meantime, the current $5 banknote will continue to be issued. It will be able to be used even after the new banknote is issued." No date has been set for the reveal of the new design.

"This is a good opportunity to strike a good balance between the monarch on the coins and a First Nations design on the fiver," Australia's treasurer, Jim Chalmers, said. "It’s important to remember that the monarch will continue to be on our coins."

In addition, Aboriginal leaders applauded the decision. "This is a massive win for the grassroots, First Nations people who have been fighting to decolonise this country," Lidia Thorpe, a senator and DjabWurrung Gunnai Gunditjmara woman, tweeted. (Thorpe had previously called Queen Elizabeth a "colonizer.")

Following the death of Queen Elizabeth, King Charles succeeded her as head of state in Australia. Australia is one of fifteen Commonwealth realms, where the British monarch is also the head of state. In 1999, the country voted in a referendum to keep the monarch as head of state.

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