Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you to Senator Smith. She's an outstanding advocate on these issues in South Australia and more broadly for her state. The question goes to the heart of what the Voice is about: recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in our Constitution and respecting 65,000 years of culture and tradition. It's about listening to advice from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people about matters that affect their lives so governments can make better decisions, and about making practical progress in Indigenous health, education, employment and housing so people can have a better life. That's what the Voice is about.

We all know that governments have spent billions trying to deal with these issues. Many of us have been in this chamber for many years and have made contributions on the Closing the Gap statements. The extent of the task before the nation is clear. We have not achieved the results we all want. The gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians is not closing. We know there are enormous challenges facing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people: life expectancy eight years shorter than for non-Indigenous Australians, worse rates of suicide, worse rates of disease, worse rates of infant mortality, and fewer opportunities for education and training.

The current approach is broken, and the Voice is our best chance to fix that. Voting 'no' means nothing will change, and it means accepting that we can't do better. I don't think Australians accept that, which is why those opposite keep trying to change the conversation. They keep trying to change the conversation from what the Voice will do, to other matters. The fact is the Voice is a vehicle to deliver real improvements for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in health, life expectancy, education and employment and housing. What we know is that, when governments listen to people about issues that affect them, they make better decisions, they get better results and they get better value for money.