Mark Dreyfus, a former Labor cabinet minister, has passionately called on the Albanese government to transition Australia into a republic and to consider adopting four-year electoral terms. His remarks came during a speech on Labor and the Constitution at the Australian National University in Canberra.

As a former attorney-general recently moved to the backbench following Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s cabinet reshuffle, Dreyfus emphasized the significant history of the Labor party in pursuing constitutional reforms. He lauded the efforts of the Whitlam, Fisher, and Hawke administrations, which have been pivotal in driving constitutional change.

Dreyfus highlighted the urgency for the federal government to align with Australian states and territories that already have four-year terms. He argued that the current three-year terms make Australia an anomaly on the global stage, with only six out of 186 nations maintaining such short legislative periods.

“All Australian states and territories have adopted four-year terms,” Dreyfus pointed out, stressing the need for the federal government to follow suit “sooner rather than later” to ensure more stability and continuity in governance.

“All Australian states and territories have adopted four-year terms,” he said.

“We are also an outlier in world terms, with just six of 186 nations with active legislatures having three-year terms.”

Albanese has supported the “common sense” notion of a four-year national term but said he required bipartisan support.

Former prime minister John Howard earlier this month called on Opposition Leader Sussan Ley to work with Albanese on establishing four-year terms.

“It’s ludicrous you’ve got four-year terms in all the states, but the national parliament doesn’t. It’s just crazy,” he told the ABC.