1st Philip Benwell State of the Constitution

RSVPs have now closed for this event.

Australians must know the truth: our great Constitution is in perilous danger. 

The first-ever Philip Benwell State of the Constitution Address is a definitive, Oxford-Union-meets-Press-Club-style lecture on the present and future health of Australia's supreme legal document. Hear from Philip like never before as he navigates the complexities of the Constitution and its history, as well as gets to the bottom of just what the Federal Government is really up to with its crusade for a Voice and a republic. Following his address, Philip is joined by Dr Neville Rochow KC and Hon. Barnaby Joyce MP for the kind of erudite, raw conversation our country needs to have, but doesn't.

Whether you're a law student or an incumbent politician, you need to hear this timely analysis of our Constitution – and its enemies. For those travelling to Brisbane, you'll receive a 15 per cent discount on all Emporium accommodation.

Philip Benwell MBE has served as National Chairman of the Australian Monarchist League since 1993. He is "renowned not only in Australia but throughout the Commonwealth" (Lord Molyneaux) as an expert on constitutional affairs, and as "one of the staunchest defenders" (Tony Abbott) of constitutional monarchy. He is the author of In Defence of Australia's Constitutional Monarchy (2003), A Very Public Affair: The Australian Constitution and Crown (2013) and Australia: Our Country, Our Constitution, Our Governance (2016). Prior to the pandemic, he regularly travelled to London to advise the House of Lords. In the early 1990s, he coordinated the Queen Elizabeth Gate Appeal in Australia, established by His Royal Highness Prince Michael of Kent to fund the construction of the Queen Elizabeth Gates in Hyde Park. Under Benwell, Australia raised more capital than any other nation other than the United Kingdom. Benwell was appointed a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in 1976 for his services to the community.

Dr Neville Rochow KC is a King's Counsel whose barrister’s practice included competition law and corporate and commercial disputes in most Australian jurisdictions. He has lectured and written on a wide range of professional, constitutional, and human rights subjects. Currently, he holds honorary professorships at the University of Adelaide Law School and the Notre Dame Australia (Sydney) Law School. He is also a Senior Fellow at the International Center for Law and Religion Studies.

Hon. Barnaby Joyce MP is Shadow Minister for Veterans' Affairs and Member for New England in the House of Representatives. As Leader of the National Party of Australia, he served as the 17th Deputy Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia from 2016 to 2018, and then again from 2021 to 2022. Regarded widely as a champion for Australia, particularly regional Australia, he brings his longtime service as a parliamentarian to the constitutional debate.