He restored an oath of allegiance to the Queen when he was sworn in as Prime Minister, but Tony Abbott has ruled out bringing back Knights and Dames in Australia.
Monarchists including David Flint and Alexander Downer have mused that the PM is such a traditionalist that he may follow New Zealand’s lead and bring back knighthoods.
But critics within the Liberal Party have savaged the idea of as an attempt to introduce a “bunyip aristocracy”.
In an interview with The Sunday Telegraph, Mr Abbott said he did not support the idea, which would involve converting the Companion of the Order of Australia (AC) to Knighthoods or reintroducing a new regal honour.