Australia should move to be a republic when reign of Queen Elizabeth II ends, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard said on Tuesday.

　　Gillard also planned to lead a national debate on republic after the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, 84, ends.

　　The prime minister said that despite being a republican, she understood that Australians had a “deep affection” for the British monarch.

　　“What I would like to see as prime minister is that we work our way through to an agreement on a model for the republic,” Gillard told reporters in Townsville of Queensland.

　　“I think the appropriate time for this nation to move to be a republic is when we see the monarch change.”

　　“Obviously I'm hoping for Queen Elizabeth that she lives a long and happy life, and having watched her mother I think there's every chance that she will.”

　　According to ABC News, Gillard's comments put her absolutely at odds with Opposition Leader Tony Abbott, who is a staunch monarchist and was at the center of the anti-republican cause in the 1999 referendum, which rejected the notion of change.

　　Since Federation on January 1, 1901, Australia has maintained a stable liberal democratic political system and is a Commonwealth realm, which has Elizabeth II as its monarch.

　　The comments reveal one of the few areas of genuine difference between the candidates ahead of Saturday's elections, where Gillard is leading Abbott by four percentage points, according to the latest Newspoll.

　　澳大利亚总理茱莉娅•吉拉德于本周二称，澳大利亚应在英国女王伊丽莎白二世退位后推行共和体制。

　　吉拉德还计划在84岁的女王退位后举行有关共和制的全国大讨论。

　　吉拉德称，尽管身为一名共和党人，但她能够理解澳大利亚人对英国女王的“深厚感情”。

　　吉拉德在昆士兰州汤斯维尔市接受记者采访时说：“在我的总理任期内，我希望我们自己能先就澳大利亚的共和制模式达成一致。”

　　“我认为澳大利亚推进共和制的最佳时机就是在英国更换君主时。”

　　“我当然希望伊丽莎白女王能幸福长寿，女王的母亲很长寿，我想女王也一样。”

　　据澳大利亚广播公司报道，吉拉德的这番言论遭到了反对党领袖托尼•艾伯特的反对。艾伯特是一位坚定的君主制主义者，他在1999年的全民公决中是反共和的中坚力量，此次全民公决未通过改制决议。

　　自1901年1月1日澳大利亚联邦成立以来，澳大利亚成为由女王伊丽莎白二世统治的英联邦的成员，并一直保持着稳定的自由民主政治体制。

　　澳大利亚将于本周六举行大选，吉拉德的此番言论体现了各党派候选人在某些领域所持政见的显著差别。据Newspoll最新民调显示，目前吉拉德的支持率领先艾伯特4个百分点。