Chapter 269: The Good News About Population
Seeing Arthur's attention to the construction of the sports venue, the cabinet officials naturally did not dare to be negligent.
After a week of discussions and preliminary plans, the specific plan for the construction of the sports venue was finally settled.
First, regarding the size of the sports venue, Arthur insisted that the capacity should be a maximum of 50,000 people. This would be an ultra-large sports facility, and the location for the venue was chosen just north of the capital district, very close to Newcastle. The area had enough vast plains to build the venue.
To meet the needs of the upcoming Olympics, the venue would have multiple sections to cater to the Olympic events.
When it came to naming the new sports venue, the cabinet, after consulting with Arthur, decided to name it the Australasia National Stadium. After all, the purpose of hosting the Olympics was to boost the reputation and international influence of Australasia, and naming the venue after the country itself was a way to advertise Australasia from the very start, aligning with the original goal of the Olympics.
After the initial construction plan was confirmed, the government decided to allocate 10 million AUD over two years for the construction of the new stadium and to invite construction companies to handle the major modules of the stadium.
Australasia was open to both domestic and foreign construction companies, but the government's requirements were strict. If there were any issues in the construction of the Olympic venue, it would escalate into an international dispute, and the responsible construction company's leadership would be sentenced by the Australasia government.
It should be noted that Australasia's laws were quite strict, and this was one of the government's main methods for punishing criminal cases.
Since the citizens of Australasia were well-fed and clothed, crimes were usually committed by habitual offenders and outlaws who could not be rehabilitated. These individuals were of no use to the development of the country and even posed a threat to its stability.
Strict laws were in place to deal with them, with serious criminal cases often resulting in the death penalty, either by hanging or execution by firing squad.
According to rough statistics from the law enforcement department, from the founding of Australia in 1900 until the end of 1909, over 3,100 people had been sentenced to death, with more than 2,000 of them being dangerous criminals with blood on their hands.
After executing these 3,100 criminals, Australasia's crime rate had decreased by more than twenty times compared to 1900, and there were very few cases of homicide in the major cities.
Once the government publicly announced the construction of the sports venue, it attracted widespread attention and support from the people of Australasia.
This wasn't because of Arthur's popularity, but because once the people of Australasia had enough to eat and wear, they had more leisure time for other activities. However, the entertainment environment and facilities in Australasia were still quite limited. Additionally, due to the government's increasing control over the sale and circulation of large weapons, hunting with substandard handguns was no longer a viable option. This led to hunting gradually becoming less popular.
It's worth noting that because many of Australasia's factories strictly enforced a ten-hour workday and some royal factories even implemented an eight-hour workday, people now had a lot of free time. With limited entertainment options, procreation became an understandable choice for many in Australasia.
Furthermore, the government had been encouraging childbirth in recent years. Families that had children were rewarded with money, and the education and living expenses of children were guaranteed until adulthood.
As a result, the people of Australasia were not opposed to having children. In fact, if managed well, having more children could create extra income for families, essentially adding another laborer to help earn money.
Currently, Australasia was adding over 100,000 newborns every year, which was one of the main reasons for the rising population growth rate.
How high was the support for the new sports venue? Even before the construction of the venue officially began, large numbers of Australasians had already spontaneously gone to the planned area for the sports stadium, intending to level the land for future construction.
However, such actions were quickly halted. While it was necessary to clear the construction area before building, there was no need to waste precious labor on it.
After all, wasn't this work that could be done by the indigenous people? For Australasia, the indigenous people were the least valuable; if a few tens of thousands of them died every year, who would care?
Time passed quickly, and before the sports venue construction officially began, it was already January 1910.
Arthur paid great attention to the annual report summary meeting. After all, he had not handled much of the government's affairs throughout 1909, and it was time to take full control of the country's development and plan for the upcoming years.
Looking at the historical timeline, World War I should still be a few years away. But who could guarantee that the world would follow the same course as history? What if the war broke out tomorrow?
With that in mind, Arthur decided to remind the government to prepare for a potential major war in Europe in the future.
Before the cabinet meeting began, Arthur made an appointment, appointing the second son of Butler Kent, Hunter, as the Minister of Royal Affairs, filling the last vacant seat in the cabinet.
This appointment was a bit sudden, but to the cabinet members, it was quite reasonable.
The position of Minister of Royal Affairs was bound to be filled by Arthur's most trusted confidant, and no one else had the right to touch it.
If anyone could be called Arthur's most trusted confidant, it would undoubtedly be Butler Kent, and he was naturally the first choice.
However, Butler Kent was already serving as the royal steward and managing the royal family's affairs. Even though the title of Minister of Royal Affairs was given to Butler Kent, it was more for the sake of making his position sound more dignified. His actual power and function would remain unchanged.
Thus, it made perfect sense for Hunter, Butler Kent's second son, to take over the position of Minister of Royal Affairs from his father.
After all, positions like the royal steward were generally hereditary, with the position typically passed down within the family of the monarch's most trusted servants. Though it might sound like just a servant's role, in an absolute monarchy like Australasia, the power held by Butler Kent was not much smaller than that of the cabinet members.
It could even be said, without exaggeration, that if it came to choosing between a cabinet member and Butler Kent, Arthur would have no hesitation in choosing Kent.
The reason was simple: Arthur could be absolutely certain of Butler Kent's loyalty to him. In fact, Arthur could even say, half-jokingly, that if Arthur decided that Kent was no longer useful, Kent would not protest even if asked to die.
As for Hunter, being the second son of Butler Kent, he was destined to inherit the role of the royal steward and become the next royal steward in the future.
Therefore, the position of Minister of Royal Affairs suited Hunter well and allowed him to get familiar with working for Arthur while still receiving guidance from his father.
As for the concern that the Kent family might one day hold too much power and pose a threat to the monarchy, Arthur was not at all worried.
First of all, Hunter's family's power came entirely from the royal family, and without the monarchy, they would not have real power. Secondly, Arthur trusted the loyalty of Butler Kent and his family enough not to worry about their potential threat.
Moreover, the Royal Security Intelligence Bureau had grown significantly over time. If it couldn't control all the intelligence in the palace and ensure the security of the royal family, the director of the bureau would need to be replaced.
Hunter attended the cabinet meeting and received many congratulations from the cabinet members.
Although Hunter had just turned of age, the cabinet members wanted to maintain good relations with him, considering that he was likely to become the royal steward in the future.
The cabinet meeting lasted the entire day and provided Arthur with a complete understanding of the country's current development status. Several new positions also reported their work, giving Arthur insight into the judicial and religious conditions in Australasia.
Overall, Australasia's development was progressing smoothly, and the population growth was very promising.
As of January 1910, Australasia's total population had surpassed 8.52 million, approaching Arthur's original goal of 10 million for the regional power status.
Among the population, nearly 7 million were in Australia, about 1.5 million in New Zealand, over 50,000 in the New Guinea colony, and about 13,500 in the Timor colony. These were the results of various immigration policies established by the two colonies.
In terms of population structure, 69.7% of the population were of British descent, 12.1% of German descent, 11.9% of Russian descent, and 6.3% from other backgrounds.
The largest population group in Australasia was still the British descendants, with a total of 5.94 million. The second and third largest groups were German and Russian, with 1.03 million and 1.01 million respectively.
This showed the extent to which European countries were sending immigrants to Australasia, and most of the population growth in Australasia had been driven by these European immigrants.
(End of Chapter)
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