of the 56 member states (65 per cent) are republics. The prime minister should not have the power to dismiss the governor-general at will and vice versa. Other republicans have focused on the principles of a monarchy: many disagree with the hereditary principle (based on a form of primogeniture) that determines succession of the throne. They argue that in a modern and democratic society no one should be expected to defer to another simply because of their birth. Some assert that the hereditary monarch and unelected governor-general have no mandate to dismiss an elected government. At the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting of October 2011, the leaders of the 16 Commonwealth realms agreed that they would support change to their respective succession laws regarding male primogeniture, and allow the monarch to marry a Roman Catholic. The ban on Catholics from being the monarch would remain, because the monarch has to be in "Communion with the Church of England." Arguments against change Supporters of the monarchy in New Zealand have said: "Constitutional monarchy is tried and proven system of government, some of the most politically stable nations in the world are constitutional monarchies; whereas some of the most unstable and repressive regimes have been republics." In the words of former Governor-General Sir Michael Hardie Boys, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it". For New Zealand, "monarchy summarises the inheritance of a thousand years of constitutional government and our links with a glorious past," New Zealand is already an independent, sovereign nation with a national identity of its own; The monarchy is a symbol of unity between New Zealand and the other Commonwealth realms that share the same person as monarch; part of a "global family". The monarch is politically neutral and is a symbol of national unity rather than division; The monarch has "little real practical political powers and is a protector of and not a threat to democracy"; Hereditary selection of the sovereign is the "most natural" non-partisan way to choose a leader. Cost Supporters of the monarchy have argued that it costs New Zealand taxpayers only a small outlay for royal engagements and tours, and the modest expenses of the governor-general's establishment. They state "[t]his figure is about one dollar per person per year", about $4.3 million per annum. An analysis by New Zealand Republic in 2010 claimed the office of governor-general cost New Zealand taxpayers about $7.6 million