On Monday, an event at Parliament House in Canberra, where the king was making an important speech, was disrupted by Senator Lydia Thorpe when she shouted “you are not my king” from the floor of the Great Hall.

Her comments were called “disrespectful” by Anthony Albanese, Australia’s Republican prime minister, who attended the event, and by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, who called the king an “incredible ambassador.”

Responding to the vandalism of the statue, a NSW Police spokesman said: “Police were called to the Queen Victoria Building on Market Street in the Sydney CBD at around 5.30am today (October 22) following reports of vandalism of the statue.

“Officers from the City of Sydney Police Department established a crime scene and an investigation has commenced.

“As inquiries continue, anyone with information about this incident is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.”

Ms Thorpe, who wore a possum-skin coat and carried a traditional message stick inside Parliament House, shouted: “You are not our king, you are not sovereign… you have committed genocide against our people.

“Give us back our land. Give us back what you stole from us… Our children, our people. You destroyed our land.”