'Outdated' royal succession rules to change

PERTH, Australia?? British Prime Minister David Cameron said Friday that the 16 Commonwealth countries for which Queen Elizabeth II is monarch have agreed to remove gender discrimination in the order of succession to the throne.

Commonwealth national leaders also agreed at a summit in the west coast city of Perth to lift a ban on monarchs marrying Roman Catholics, he said.

Any one of the former British colonies could have vetoed the changes to the centuries-old rules that ensure that a male heir takes the throne ahead of older sisters.

"Attitudes have changed fundamentally over the centuries and some of the outdated rules ? like some of the rules of succession ? just don't make sense to us any more," Cameron told reporters in Perth.

1. Only on msnbc.com

   1. Looking for a job? North Dakota needs you
   2. Cain: Foreign policy details aren't important
   3. 52 percent of kids under 8 use mobile devices
   4. Economy grows at fastest pace in a year
   5. Last act of Thai flood drama not yet written
   6. Getting your home ready for the big chill
   7. Ouch! Does this year's flu shot hurt more?

"The idea that a younger son should become monarch instead of an elder daughter simply because he is a man, or that a future monarch can marry someone of any faith except a Catholic ? this way of thinking is at odds with the modern countries that we have become," he added.

Slideshow: Fairytales do come true... (on this page)

Cameron made the announcement on the first day of a biennial meeting of 53 Commonwealth leaders.

Cameron will introduce the legislation in the next session of Parliament, the Telegraph newspaper reported.

Wedding prompts review
Britain's government began the process of reviewing the rules of royal succession so that if Prince William's first child is a girl, she would eventually become queen. The review started before William married commoner Kate Middleton in April.

William is second in line to the throne after his father, Prince Charles, who is the queen's first-born child. Charles' sister Anne is lower in the line of succession than her younger brothers Andrew and Edward. Charles, in turn, had only sons, William and Harry.

Story: Hear ye, hear ye: UK royal heirs may wed Catholics

Elizabeth II succeeded her father, King George VI, because he had no sons. If she had had a brother, however much younger he was, he would have jumped above her in the line of succession.

Video: Who?s next in line in the royal succession? (on this page)

The thorny issue of the succession has been an on-and-off topic in Britain, but has never been resolved. In 2009, then Prime Minister Gordon Brown's government considered a bill that would end the custom of putting males ahead of females in the succession line, as well as lift a ban on British monarchs marrying Roman Catholics. The government did not have time to pursue it before Brown's term ended.

The rule has excluded women from succeeding to the throne in the past. Queen Victoria's first child was a daughter ? also called Victoria ? but it was her younger brother who succeeded her on the throne, as King Edward VII.

Buckingham Palace has always refrained from commenting on the political issue, saying it's a matter for the government to decide.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45073553/ns/world_news-europe/

cam newton emmy awards philadelphia eagles nick collins cape coral fl friday night lights kansas city chiefs