The Indigenous Affairs minister has sparked mass confusion and outrage after claiming a Voice to Parliament would have no interest in trying to change the date of Australia Day.
Linda Burney has repeatedly sidestepped questions from the Opposition in Parliament this week – Deputy Liberal Leader Sussan Ley, in particular – about the scope of the advisory body.
Ms Ley has repeatedly called on Ms Burney to outline what the Voice would and would not be able to make representations to parliament on – with Ms Burney ruling out on Tuesday that it would give advice about Australia Day.
She said: ‘I can tell you what the Voice will not be giving advice on. It won’t be giving advice on parking tickets.
‘It won’t be giving advice on changing Australia Day. It will not be giving advice on all of the ridiculous things that that side has come up with.’
But constitutional experts have cast doubt on Ms Burney’s claim.
Linda Burney has repeatedly avoided questions from the Opposition this week – Deputy Liberal Leader Sussan Ley, in particular – about the scope of the advisory body
Ms Ley hit back on Wednesday morning in an interview with Peter Stefanovic, calling on Ms Burney to return to parliament to ‘correct the record’.
‘I think Linda Burney is in real trouble here,’ she said.
‘If you mislead parliament, unintentionally perhaps, you need to step back into the chamber and correct the record.
‘It is clearly not the case that the Voice would not be able to make representations about Australia Day.’
The government has stood firm in its message that the advisory body – should the Voice succeed at the referendum – would be able to make representations to parliament on all matters impacting First Nations people.
Critics and the Opposition are calling for the government to be more specific, given the idea of what impacts Indigenous people varies depending on who you ask.
Ms Ley had asked Ms Burney if the Voice could ‘make representations to the Chief of the Defence Force on military acquisitions or the location or operation of military bases’.
Ms Ley had asked Ms Burney if the Voice could ‘make representatives to the Chief of the Defence Force on military acquisitions or the location or operation of military bases’
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese – along with most other Labor MPs in the chamber – laughed in response.
The government argues these questions have been asked in ‘bad faith’. Any advisory body would have no veto power, and decision making would remain with the government of the day and parliament.
Constitutional law expert George Williams told The Australian it is ‘conceivable’ to expect a group like the Voice to Parliament to make representations on the date of Australia Day.
The debate over whether Australia should change the date of the national day has been raging for decades, and only been amplified in recent years.
Mr Williams said: ‘The question is “matters relating to Indigenous peoples” and a public holiday commemorating the colonisation of Australia might be something they make representations about. I only say “might” – we don’t know – but it’d be open to them to do so if they wanted and then it would be a judgment call.
‘[Ms Burney] may know better than me. It’s her community after all. She may be making a judgment that she doesn’t believe they will. That’s why I don’t think she’s wrong; it’s just a judgment.’
Constitutional experts have cast doubt on Ms Burney’s claims on Tuesday that the body would not be interested in Australia Day
Other experts say a date change is likely not a high priority, but could not give assurances that it would never be on the agenda.
The prime minister said Australians will be afforded a ‘once-in-a-lifetime opportunity’ to improve the lives of First Nations people between October and December.
‘Where’s the downside here?’ he asked. ‘What are people risking here?
‘From my perspective this is all upside.’
Mr Albanese said ‘the truth is for most people watching this it will have no impact on their lives’, but that it ‘might make things better for the most disadvantaged people in Australia’.
After years of doing things ‘for’ Aboriginal people, often with the best of intentions, the PM said a Voice to Parliament would allow Indigenous people to take the front seat on matters crucial to them.
There have been many concerns about what exactly this means. Critics of the Voice say there is not enough detail provided on just what matters the advisory body will have input on.
Ms Burney said: ‘I can tell you what the Voice will not be giving advice on. It won’t be giving advice on parking tickets. It won’t be giving advice on changing Australia Day. It will not be giving advice on all of the ridiculous things that that side has come up with’
Attorney General Mark Dreyfus tried to clear up that confusion during the press conference.
He listed five key issues which will become the core focus of the advisory group: health, employment, education, housing and justice.
‘No harm can come from this referendum, only good,’ he said. ‘The parliament has done its job and now it’s up to the Australian people.’
Both the Yes and No campaigns will now ramp up efforts to connect with voters ahead of the referendum, which will likely take place in October this year.
The Liberal Party, Nationals and One Nation will all oppose the Voice and contribute to official No pamphlets to be delivered to every household.
Labor and the Greens, along with several independents, will collaborate on a Yes pamphlet.
READ MORE: Bombshell tweets reveal Yes campaigner’s vision for Australia after the Voice is introduced: ‘Reparations, land back, paid rent’
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