Claire Chandler (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the government's Referendum (Machinery Provisions) Amendment Bill 2022—I was just checking the date, because it is now 2023! This bill will determine the settings for how the referendum on an Indigenous Voice to parliament is conducted, but it should be noted, and the coalition is of no doubt, that the changes included in this bill could be used for future referenda, so it is absolutely critical that we get this right.

It is no small issue when a government calls for the people of this country to vote on a referendum on our Constitution, whatever that proposal may be. In due course, Australians will get the chance to have their vote and have their say on the proposal that the government puts forward for that referendum. Changing our nation's Constitution is always a very serious matter. That's why it's so important that the ground rules that govern each and every referendum are fair, are balanced and give Australians the best possible chance and opportunity to fully understand the proposition that is being put forward so that they can cast their votes accordingly. We, in this place, cannot set a precedent in relation to referenda that it is acceptable or normal for the government of the day to set ground rules that favour a preferred side. The principle that both the 'yes' and the 'no' sides are able to operate from a level playing field is vital in ensuring that Australians who have the duty and the privilege to decide on any changes to our Constitution can make an informed decision.

If a position put to the Australian people deserves to receive enough support to successfully pass, then it should be able to achieve that support without getting an unfair leg-up from the government of the day. That's why it is so important, in setting the machinery of this referendum, that it proceeds in a way we can all agree is fair and we can all agree is reflective of the way that future referenda should be operated. This is not just about the referendum that we will have at the end of this year; it is also about the potential for future referenda later in this parliament. It is an obvious point to make that we don't know what those future questions may be that could be put to the Australian people regarding constitutional change. Many people who vote 'yes' in this referendum might find themselves voting 'no' in a future one and vice versa. It's in nobody's interest for a precedent to be established that either a 'yes' case or a 'no' case is advantaged or disadvantaged by the rules. That is why the opposition doesn't support this bill in its current form.

While other speakers from the coalition have spoken to the issues that we have with this bill, I want to reiterate some of my concerns and some of those concerns more generally with this bill tonight. The opposition has highlighted the following three points for the government. It is our sincere hope that they will not only take note of our concerns but move to address them. The government must restore the pamphlet to outline the 'yes' and 'no' cases. The government must establish official 'yes' and 'no' campaign organisations. And the government must appropriately fund those official organisations. Addressing these three key points is essential if the government hopes to hold a referendum in which voters are empowered to make informed decisions while upholding the integrity of the referendum process.

To directly address point 1, the opposition welcomes the government's announcement that they will restore the pamphlet. It is particularly important that this is the case not just for this referendum but for future referenda. The same applies to the other points that the opposition has raised in relation to this bill.

The establishment of official 'yes' and 'no' campaigns which both start with an equal minimum level of funding so that neither side is denied the opportunity to adequately put their case is another important standard for all of the referenda we hold in the future. We can't allow a precedent or have it be suggested from the starting point that there is only one legitimate side to an argument or one legitimate opinion to be expressed. That goes for referenda as well. Whichever way this referendum goes, it is a fact that there will be millions of Australians who vote yes and there will be millions of Australians who vote no. Advocates, activists and everyday Australians will debate, discuss and put their views on which way Australians should vote, and that is a good thing. That is a vital function of our democracy. We should be able to have these conversations openly. But the matter for consideration for this parliament with this bill is to set fair rules so that each side in the debate can put their case and then each Australian adult can meet their own decision and vote based on those cases that have been presented and their own consideration of the views that have been put forward.

As the debate proceeds, we will see a huge number of different opinions and different cases put forward. As I said, this is a good thing. It is a vital function of our democracy that we live in a society where we are able to put these different views on the record and argue the points and make our case. But having official campaigns and an official pamphlet means that there is a clear reference point for all Australians to start informing themselves, doing their own research and forming their own opinion.

I think sometimes being in this place and being as engaged in the political process as we all are it's easy for us to forget that not everybody is engaged in that way. We have compulsory voting in this country, so at some point there is an element of compulsion to make a decision. But we need to be cognisant of that lack of knowledge or lack of engagement and put information into the public sphere so that people who have not necessarily been as engaged on this particular issue for this referendum, or any issues for any referenda, are able to get that information and make up their own minds which way they should vote. You can't have a situation where it is easy to find the official case for one side but much harder to find the official case for the other side.

On the internet, particularly social media, we know there will be many spurious arguments put out. That is why having an official pamphlet with official cases put forward by official campaigns for both sides is incredibly important. We need that pamphlet and those campaigns to have the basic resources to put the case to ensure that there is always an official source of information for each side that Australians can go back to and review and refresh their memory on exactly what is being proposed before it comes time for them to make their decision about the proposed referendum at the ballot box. It ensures that the centre of the debate is an official document that both campaigns feel puts their best arguments forward. That's because in the absence of having any sort of official campaign documentation, I can certainly see the situation where the centre of the campaign for this referendum, or for any referendum into the future, is played out on social media, whether that's Twitter, TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat or wherever you get your social media from. Yes, those are part of the environment we're operating in and part of our democracy, but we know from elections past that not everything that somebody says on social media is necessarily factual and that we do need to have those single sources of truth for both sides of the referendum debate.

Like I said, we know that there are potential problems with misinformation and that there are potential issues with foreign interference, so I certainly encourage the government to consider and adopt the sensible points put forward by the coalition. Conducting a referendum on changing our Constitution is no small thing; it's a big decision for Australians to make. It's a decision that Australians of my age haven't had to make before because we weren't of age when the republic referendum was conducted. I can just remember that happening when I was nine years old, and so I think it's important to recognise that when the republic referendum occurred resources were provided to ensure that Australians could make an educated choice about becoming a republic or not. A 'yes' case was presented and a 'no' case was presented, and that has been the case in referenda past.

The referendum that we will approach towards the end of the year should be no different and, like I said in my initial remarks, we also have to keep in mind that any decision about the conduct of referenda that we make in this chamber today will impact on the conduct of any potential referenda in the future of this parliament. We owe it to ourselves and to the Australian people to provide the information they need to make an educated and informed decision on changing the Constitution whenever that might happen—but, certainly, within the life of this parliament.