Luke Gosling (Solomon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the voice and the referendum ahead of us, and in doing so I acknowledge those Australians living in the state of South Australia for establishing a voice at a state level. That happened on the weekend in a special sitting. Here in the federal government we introduced a referendum machinery amendment bill December last year, which has now passed the parliament. This bill is a key milestone on the way to holding a referendum on a Voice to Parliament later this year, and another key milestone was the confirmation of the form of words that will be taken to the Australian people.

As we approach a referendum, it's important that we all listen to each other, open our ears, open our minds and open our hearts in a spirit of mutual respect, because referendums by their very nature are binary. There will be two sides to a national conversation. My earnest hope is that one side will be a lot bigger in support of the establishment of a voice, but there will still be robust arguments, and some of those arguments will be difficult for people to hear. And so we must commit ourselves to minimising harm at all costs. All of us must commit to doing that and to not harming our fellow Australians. I believe that people will be able to learn a lot from this historic event. They'll be able to learn from others who think differently. Hopefully, we can disagree constructively, and I believe Australian democracy will be all the stronger for it.

If we do rise to that challenge, I believe that this vote on the voice can be one of the most successful, memorable and uniting referendums in our history. As I've said many times on radio, on TV, at market stalls and in addresses to youth leadership delegations, with First Nations audiences and immigrant audiences alike, Constitutional recognition through a voice is about two things. It is about recognition and consultation: recognition that there is 65,000 years of shared history and continuous, unbroken connection to this land by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians; and consultation through a voice while listening to communities, delivering better policies and better outcomes as a result.

The voice is an advisory body made up of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians who will give advice to government on issues that affect their communities. It's that simple. The voice will help to close the gap by giving communities as say in matters affecting them so that better policies can be made. It will help deliver practical change on the ground in areas like health, education, housing and welfare reform. We know that you get better outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities when you listen to people on the ground. The voice was the first request from the Uluru Statement from the Heart, the culmination of the most extensive consultation with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples on Constitutional recognition in the history of our nation. This is the best chance we have to start to address the injustices of the past and create change for a better future. I believe that Australians are ready to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the Constitution. It's an opportunity for all Australians. It is about walking the long road of reconciliation—as I did with former Essendon football player Michael Long, from Melbourne to Canberra, for Indigenous rights in 2004. As Michael, 'Longy', said at the time, almost 20 years ago, 'This is not about Indigenous Australians and non-Indigenous Australians; this is about all Australians.' We shouldn't be engaged in a race to the top, and I hope we can do that.

This referendum will enrich the lives of all Australians. It will connect us to a cultural heritage tens of thousands of years in the making. It will connect us through our Constitution. It is the right thing to do and I hope Australians join us in that effort.