SA prepares to hold indigenous voice to parliament vote, as Steven Marshall backs calls for national action

Indigenous South Australians vote later this year to elect a Voice to Parliament group – as Steven Marshall joins calls for national action.

Indigenous South Australians will go to the polls later this year to elect a new Voice to Parliament as Steven Marshall pushes for action at a national level.

The Premier will join other senior Liberal figures across the country this week urging the Federal Government to hold a referendum to enshrine a national voice to parliament in the Constitution after the next election.

Mr Marshall will launch a new book by NSW Liberal Senator Andrew Bragg in Adelaide on Thursday, which backs the creation of a national indigenous voice to parliament as well as a new public holiday on January 27.

SA Premier Steven Marshall, pictured with PM Scott Morrison, is one of the senior Liberals calling for more action on an indigenous voice to parliament. Picture: Dean Martin.

‘Declaration Day’, which would be held in addition to Australia Day, is one of Senator Bragg’s recommendations in his book ‘Buraadja’, which means ‘Tomorrow’.

Mr Marshall has contributed to the book along with senior Liberal figures including Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, Minister for Indigenous Australians Ken Wyatt and NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian.

The premier said he was pleased to be associated with the book’s launch, which will be held at state parliament.

“I share many of Andrew Bragg’s aims in writing his book and I hope it will receive the attention it deserves,” he said.

“It continues the long and important tradition of Liberals encouraging public debate about reconciliation.

“One initiative we are pursuing is a Voice to the South Australian Parliament and I hope this can be put in place following extensive consultation with our Aboriginal leaders and their communities.”

The voice is one of the recommendations from the 2017 Uluru Statement of the Heart.

Noel Pearson signs the Uluru Statement at the 2017 Indigenous Constitutional Convention. Picture: James Croucher

While the Federal Government is in the process of consultations to design an indigenous Voice to Parliament, it stops short of plans to enshrine the body in the Constitution.

SA’s Commissioner for Aboriginal Engagement Dr Roger Thomas is working with the state’s Electoral Commission on arrangements for an election later this year where voters will select the first members of the state’s Aboriginal Representative Body or voice to parliament.

Under the plan, the body will have 11 members, including five elected members, five appointed members and a chair.

An electoral roll will be established for SA’s Aboriginal residents to vote for the five elected members this year, while a panel of community leaders will be selected by Dr Thomas to appoint the other members.

The Uluru Statement from the Heart, presented as an artwork

After three years, the body is intended to transition to elections for all members.

“A fully-elected body will have greater ‘grassroots’ links into the community, and higher levels of accountability and transparency and will be independent of government,” Dr Thomas said in a report late last year.

The proposed voice will have regular engagement with government and the state parliament.