Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Prime Minister, over half of our population, including one in three Labor voters, is telling you that they don't want the Voice in the Constitution. It is risky, it is permanent and it is divisive. How can the Prime Minister in good conscience go into the referendum question being put to the Australian public on 14 October knowing that he is going to divide our country clean down the middle?

Government Members:

Government members interjecting—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The Attorney-General and ministers will cease interjecting, and so will the member for Barker.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his question. He is aware that, for many years, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have advocated for constitutional recognition. For many years they came together, as a result of the system established under the coalition government, at Uluru to determine that they want that recognition through a voice. Commonwealth, state and territory governments have all committed to it, business leaders are supporting it, legal experts have endorsed it. We don't hear about the Solicitor-General's advice anymore. Remember that? Faith groups and sporting codes are supporting it, and there is an army of volunteers campaigning for it.

On 14 October the Australian people can vote for it. They can vote yes for recognition, yes to listening and yes in order to get better results. That is the position that we have put forward after consultation and after the gracious request from First Nations people. They're not voting for a party or a person; they're voting for an idea—an idea to promote reconciliation, an idea to bring this country together, an idea in recognition that what we've done with the best of intentions over 122 years is not working, and that if you do the same thing in the same way you should expect the same outcomes.

At the moment we have an eight-year life expectancy gap. We have gaps when it comes to an Indigenous young male, who is more likely to go to jail than to go to university. An Indigenous young woman is more likely to die in childbirth than a non-Indigenous woman. We have, right throughout the targets, only four of them on track to being met. The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice will be a committee of Indigenous Australians chosen by Indigenous Australians, giving advice to government so we can get better results for Indigenous Australians.

The Leader of the Opposition wants to defeat this referendum for political reasons, and then he says he will have another referendum. He wants two referendums. He wants to talk about this for year after year after year after year. We want outcomes.

Hon. Members:

Honourable members interjecting—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The Prime Minister will pause. The Leader of the Opposition on a point of order?

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On relevance, Mr Speaker. The question was: why does the Prime Minister refuse to listen to the population of our country?

Honourable members interjecting—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Resume your seat. The Prime Minister is being relevant to the question. It is not an excuse, Leader of the Opposition, to simply make a statement. The Prime Minister is being relevant, as the question was about the constitutional change and about what is happening. He is giving context and detail, and I will make sure he is being relevant. He has the call.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I tell you what, no-one is asking for a second referendum, which is his position—no-one. He wants to see Indigenous people, he just doesn't want them to be heard. Then he said we can change the question. He voted for the legislation. He sat over here and voted for the legislation that is the wording of this referendum which will go to the Australian people. (Time expired)