Indigenous Australians Minister Linda Burney says Labor has a mandate for Voice referendum

Labor has a clear mandate to act on the Uluru statement and all sides of politics must now work towards the creation of a Voice to parliament, Linda Burney says.

Incoming Indigenous Australians minister Linda Burney. Picture: Getty Images

Labor has a clear mandate to act on the Uluru statement and all sides of politics must now work towards the creation of a voice to parliament, incoming Indigenous Australians minister Linda Burney said on Tuesday night.

Ms Burney also called on Peter Dutton to make amends for boycotting the 2008 apology to the Stolen Generations by showing “his much talked-about different side” and backing a voice to parliament, which he has previously dismissed as a third chamber in competition with the parliament.

But Ms Burney told The Australian that Labor would not rush the process and that a consensus needed to be built before a referendum could be put.

While she hoped that would happen this term, she said it was vital that Australians could understand and unite behind the Uluru principles before a vote was held to enshrine a Voice in the Constitution.

“We are not putting a timeline on it, I don’t think that would be wise,” Ms Burney said.

“We really need to build a consensus before we put that timeline in place.

“But everyone should be clear that we are incredibly passionate about this. Anthony (Albanese) and I travelled to Uluru more than 12 months ago to recommit Labor to the statement. It is not just an election promise, it goes back well before that and it has the full support of the new prime minister and the new shadow ministry and caucus.”

Delivering the 2022 Lowitja O’Donoghue Oration at the Don Dunstan Foundation in Ade­laide, Ms Burney stressed Labor could not have been clearer during the federal campaign that it was committed to implementing the Uluru statement.

She said it intended to do so in full, meaning it would move “quickly” on a referendum to enshrine a voice to parliament in the Constitution, and also establish the Makarrata commission to progress discussions around a treaty.

“The Uluru statement says ‘In 1967 we were counted, in 2017 we seek to be heard’,” Ms Burney said. “This is what the Labor government is doing. It’s what the election outcome means. It’s the invitation the people of Australia have accepted.”

Ms Burney said Labor’s election victory marked a break with what she called the division during the Howard era over native title, reconciliation and the rise of One Nation.

She took aim at John Howard’s speech in his first term where lamented “the black armband version” of Australian history where blame for past injustices was visited upon modern generations. “Remember the inane debates about black and white arm bands?” Ms Burney asked.

“All we were seeking was truth.”

In contrast, Ms Burney pointed to Gough Whitlam’s land rights laws, Paul Keating’s Redfern Park speech and Kevin Rudd’s apology as an example of Labor’s record “on bringing First Nations people voices and interests into the heart of government decision-making”.

“Anthony Albanese and I want to add the next to this list – implementing the Uluru Statement from the Heart in full.”

Ms Burney paid qualified tribute to the Opposition Leader for his statements of regret over boycotting the apology to the Stolen Generations but said he faced a bigger test on recognising the voice.

“There is no one for whom supporting a referendum for a voice to parliament represents a bigger political opportunity than for Peter Dutton,” she said.

“It is an opportunity for Peter Dutton to show his much-­talked-about different side. It’s also about being in the right side of history.

“Peter Dutton has in recent days reflected on what it is like to be on the wrong side of history. But we all grow, and we all change. And there is no shame in that … In fact, that is what the journey of reconciliation is all about.

“And it is a path I would be very pleased to walk with Peter Dutton and the Liberal Party. “

Ms Burney also called on the Greens to embrace the voice to parliament, which they have described as a second-tier issue behind creation of a treaty. She said all sides of politics should put “the national interest ahead of narrow political ambition.”