With The Voice referendum back in the spotlight in the final sprint to polling day, federal Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has accused the government of secretly planning to bring back the contentious vote.
Speaking in Brisbane on May 1, Dutton alleged Labor was planning to revive The Voice proposal through legislation.
“Annika Wells, ex-cabinet minister in the Albanese government, has now been offered a position in relation to The Voice as well,” he told reporters.
“Obviously lending her support to Penny Wong’s position, that is that The Voice, in some form, presumably through legislation, is going to be a part of the Albanese government’s next term in power, if they’re successful on Saturday.”
Dutton called on voters to consider the implications.
“You sent a very clear message to the prime minister that you said ‘no’ to The Voice, and now the prime minister is saying back to you, ‘Well, we’ve got this secret plan, when we’re in government, to reintroduce The Voice in the form of legislation.’”
The Voice was a proposal to enshrine an Indigenous advisory body enshrined into the Constitution that would have a say over matters being considered by the executive.
Wong Says ‘The Voice’ Idea Not Truly Dead
The renewed debate was sparked after Labor’s Senate leader Penny Wong told the Betoota Talks podcast that she believed The Voice proposal would resurface within the next decade.“I think we‘ll look back on it in 10 years’ time and it’ll be a bit like marriage equality, don’t you reckon? Like, kids today, or even adults today, barely kind of clock that it used to be an issue. Remember how big an issue that was in the culture wars? Blimey, just endless,” she said.
She praised Albanese’s commitment to do “the right thing” and that it was something Indigenous leaders wanted.
Later, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese poured cold water on the idea during an appearance at the National Press Club.
Asked if he still believed in the concept, he said, “It is gone ... We need to find different paths to affect reconciliation.”
Wong later clarified her comments, acknowledging the referendum’s outcome.
Voice Proposals Have a History of Setbacks
The Voice was the most ambitious plan to date for incorporating Indigenous advice into Australian lawmaking. But it followed a string of unsuccessful attempts dating back five decades.The first was the National Aboriginal Consultative Committee (NACC), set up in 1973 under the Whitlam government. It advised the Department of Aboriginal Affairs but faced internal conflicts over its role and was disbanded by 1976.
Its successor, the National Aboriginal Congress (NAC), was intended to be more explicitly advisory. But Indigenous leaders used it to advocate for greater autonomy, clashing with government expectations. It too was dissolved, in 1985.
In 1990, the Hawke government established the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC), a more powerful, elected body responsible for Indigenous service delivery.
However, it struggled with corruption allegations and declining support (fewer and fewer Aboriginals actually voted), and was abolished by the Howard government in 2005, with bipartisan backing.
The National Indigenous Council (NIC), a short-lived advisory group set up in its place, lacked legitimacy among Indigenous communities and was shut down in 2008.
A final major attempt was made in 2009, when the Rudd government backed the creation of the National Congress of Australia’s First Peoples. But limited participation and funding cuts from the Abbott government in 2013 led to its eventual collapse by 2019.
