2 September | PN Insights: The Voice to Parliament
On Saturday 14 October Australia will vote in their first constitutional referendum since 1999. Australians will be asked to vote either yes or no on whether to establish an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese this week announced the referendum date whilst in Adelaide, as it looks increasing likely that South Australia will be one of two key states that will need to support the Voice for it pass.
How is the result determined?
For a referendum to pass, a majority of voters need to vote ‘yes’ nationally, plus a majority of voters in at least 4 out of the 6 states.
What is the question for the Voice referendum?
When Australians go to vote, they will be asked to write Yes or No to the following question:
“A Proposed Law: to alter the Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.
Do you approve of this proposed alteration?”
The referendum for the Voice to Parliament will be held on Saturday 14 October 2023.
What is the proposed change to the constitution?
If the referendum succeeds, the following paragraph will be added to the constitution:
Chapter IX Recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples 129 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice
In recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of Australia:
there shall be a body, to be called the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice;
the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice may make representations to the Parliament and the Executive Government of the Commonwealth on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples;
the Parliament shall, subject to this Constitution, have power to make laws with respect to matters relating to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice, including its composition, functions, powers and procedures.
What would the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice do?
Will the Voice add race to the constitution?
Since 1901, the Commonwealth has been able to create laws based on 'race' through Section 51 of the Constitution.
The referendum aims to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in the Constitution as the First Peoples of Australia, not by race.
How will the Voice work?
The Voice will be a committee made up of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people from across the country. It is proposed that members would be chosen from each of the states, territories and the Torres Strait Islands. The Voice would have specific remote representatives as well as representation for the mainland Torres Strait Islander population.
Do Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people support the Voice?
The idea for the Voice came directly from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people through consultation with Indigenous communities around Australia over many decades. The Voice was part of the Uluru Statement from the Heart, where more than 250 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island leaders from communities across Australia.
Currently, more than 80% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people support recognition in the Constitution through a Voice.
Can the Voice veto legislation?
The Voice will have no veto power.
Would the Voice stop or slow down process?
The Voice will only have the power to make representations to government. How these representations are handled is a matter for the executive and the Parliament, with the proposed constitutional amendment not requiring the government to accept them.
The proposed changed to the constitution would give the Parliament a substantial amount of authority to manage the relationship between the Voice and government institutions. The intent of the Voice is to improve decisions and enhance progress, not impede it.
In his legal advice on the Voice, Federal Solicitor General Stephen Donaghue said it would not clog up the courts or slow down government decision-making. He stated that the Voice “would not pose any threat to Australia’s system of representative and responsible government”. Further, he said the Voice would “enhance” the system of government and that “no such requirements can be implied” for the government to wait for Voice advice. This advice was released in April by the government.
What are the details for the Voice?
The referendum is a vote to give parliament the enabling power to design the voice. Voting in the referendum is compulsory for all Australians who are entitled to vote.
The Government has issued key design principles, partly inspired by the Indigenous Voice Co-design Process Final Report, (the Calma-Langton report), which was commissioned by the previous Coalition Government. This report was the result of 18 months of consultation with 9,478 people and organisations, including 115 community consultations in 67 locations, 2,978 submissions, 1,127 surveys, 124 stakeholder meetings and 13 webinars.
The key principles are as follows:
Source: Federal Government
What happens if the referendum passes?
Source: Federal Government
Do State and Territory Government Support the Voice?
The Voice has support from all Labor governments nationwide, where they hold power in every jurisdiction besides Tasmania.
In Tasmania, Liberal Premier Jeremy Rockliff indicated he would campaign “vigorously” for a Yes vote in April, though state party members have not been asked to adopt a unified position.
Whilst in Government, now former NSW Premier, Dominic Perrottet, signed a statement of intent to work collaboratively with the Federal and other state governments to support a constitutionally enshrined Voice to Parliament. Post the election in 2023, the new NSW Opposition Leader, Mark Speakman, has stated he will vote for the voice.
The South Australian and Western Australian branches of the Liberal Party and South Australian, Victorian, and Western Australian branches of the National Party oppose the Voice.
Does the Federal Coalition Support the Voice?
The Federal Coalition do not support the voice. However, some Federal Liberal Party members have broken party ranks and publicly stated their support.
Julian Leeser, Member for Berowra, who resigned from Shadow Cabinet where he was serving as Shadow Attorney General and Shadow Minister for Indigenous Australians
Bridget Archer, Member for Bass
Andrew Bragg, Senator for New South Wales
Further to this, Member for Calare, Andrew Gee, resigned from the Nationals and became an independent over the party’s position on the Voice.
What does the business community think about the Voice?
The Australian Financial Review reported in mid-June that a majority of ASX 20 companies would publicly support a constitutionally enshrined Voice. The Commonwealth Bank, Fujitsu Australia, Origin Energy, Transgrid, BHP and Rio Tinto are among several large organisations publicly backing the Voice. The Business Council of Australia has also given its endorsement, with President Tim Reed last week indicating the industry body’s belief that the Voice would move Australia towards “a future where prosperity is enjoyed by all”.
