We don't need a monarch or a president

Whenever a monarchist tries to argue against a republican they invariably come up with some lame comment such as "So what would you replace the Queen with, a President Blair/Bush/Latest number one bad guy?"

This is a false dichotomy - Monarch or President - we don't need neither.

Instead accept that the people are sovereign - they elect a parliament - the parliament chooses a prime minister from its elected members (the one who can command a majority for a stated manifesto) and the prime minister chooses the executive to effect policy according to the manifesto. The civil service serve the people by remaining above politics but obedient to the executive.

To echo Frederick The Great's description of the role of a monarch, the prime minister should be "The first servant of the state."

We don't need grandeur, pomp and ceremony. We just need an efficient administrator that knows they serve to lead.