Kevin Andrews (Menzies, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Families, Housing and Human Services) Share this | Hansard source

Achieving constitutional recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders is a very significant step towards genuine and lasting reconciliation. It is a cause the coalition has long been associated with and one that we have proudly long supported. The coalition's position for over a decade has been that there should be recognition of Australia's Indigenous people in the Constitution. That is why when we were in government, in 1999, we put a proposal to the people seeking to include recognition in the preamble of the Australian Constitution. As history records, our proposal unfortunately did not succeed.

We again strongly advocated for such recognition during the 2007 election campaign. It would come as no surprise, therefore, that it was our proactive approach to this issue that ensured it retained the attention it so deserves. It was the Leader of the Opposition who wrote to the Prime Minister proposing that such a committee, as proposed by the motion moved by the Minister for Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, be established. We must all remain mindful that the primary objective of a constitutional referendum to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people is to achieve a unifying moment for our nation, a moment similar to that of the 1967 referendum. The work done by the expert panel, including my friend and colleague the member for Hasluck, the first Indigenous person to be elected to this House, has continued the journey of reconciliation.

Reconciliation is something that we believe in. It is something which we are proud to support. And it is something which we will continue to advocate. We remain of the view that constitutional recognition is a continuation of that important journey.

Question agreed to.

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