Andrew Charlton (Parramatta, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

It's great to see the many Australian businesses jumping on board to support the Voice to Parliament. BHP, the 'big Australian', supports the voice. They know that this will make Australia even bigger. I'm happy to report that CommBank supports the Voice. CommBank is saying 'Yes, we can' to recognition and consultation. Woolies support the Voice because they can pick a fresh policy idea when they see one. And Optus—I'm not sure whether or not they support the Voice but I'm pretty sure they always say yes.

Not everybody thinks that business has a role or a right to express their views on the Voice. The Leader of the Opposition has tried to silence business on the Voice. He tells them they're virtue signalling. He tells them to stick to their knitting. The Leader of the Opposition criticises business leaders in the 'yes' campaign, like Michael Cheney, and lectures them about focusing on shareholder returns. Michael Cheney has created more value for Australian shareholders than all of his critics combined. It is remarkable that once again the so-called party of business on that side of House has been left behind by corporate Australia. The opposition leader has no business trying to silence business on the Voice.

See this speech in context