When town planner Janine Laver and research scientist husband James Duce become Australian citizens tomorrow, their baby girl Charlie will also celebrate her first birthday.

Charlie’s parents, Welsh and English nationals respectively, will be among 30 Melbourne people from 12 countries to become new Australians on Constitution Day.

Charlie, their first child, was born here. “She’s already an Aussie,” Janine said.

Janine, a City of Port Phillip planner, said she and James moved here in 2004 to end two years of trans-Atlantic trips while both worked in different countries.

“James was working in Boston, USA, and I was in London, so we spent those two years flying back and forth across the Atlantic Ocean to see one another.

“In deciding we had had enough of that arrangement, we agreed Melbourne was the ideal place for us to come back together, as it provided opportunities for us both to further our careers without either of us compromising our goals.

“It has certainly been a good move and, since the arrival of Charlie last year, we felt the natural next step was to become citizens ourselves,” Janine said.

Australians across the nation will look to the past and the future as part of Constitution Day celebrations tomorrow, a Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) spokesperson said.

“Constitution Day is the occasion that marks Australia’s creation as a nation, the day in 1900 when Queen Victoria gave royal assent to the Constitution. It is also a fitting time to welcome new citizens who will contribute to our future.

“In coming days, about 500 new Australians from about 70 countries will be welcomed at citizenship ceremonies across the nation.”

Citizenship ceremonies will be staged in Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Brisbane and Canberra.

Janine Laver and husband James Duce will become Australians at 6pm tomorrow at the Victorian Archives Centre, 99 Shiel St, North Melbourne. The couple and fellow new citizens will be available for media interviews and photographs following the ceremony.

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