Indigenous treaty and truth-telling inquiry dumped as new laws rushed through parliament

A royal commission-style inquiry tasked with gathering evidence about past atrocities committed against Queensland’s First Nations people has been formally axed without consultation.

Queensland Premier David Crisafulli in state parliament on Thursday. Picture: Glenn Campbell/NewsWire

A royal commission-style inquiry tasked with gathering evidence about past atrocities committed against Queensland’s First Nations people has been axed without formal consultation, marking the first law passed by David Crisafulli’s Liberal National Party government.

Bypassing key public scrutiny processes, the new government was poised to use its five-seat majority in the state’s one-chamber parliament to repeal the historic Path to Treaty legislation late on Thursday night and prevent a typical parliamentary committee probe into law changes.

Inquiry chair Joshua Creamer, who has not received a phone call from Mr Crisafulli or Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander Partnerships Minister Fiona Simpson since the election, said the decision would set back relations with Indigenous Queenslanders “for a very long time”.

“There is not any room in this government to listen to voices opposed to them, and there is certainly not any room in this government to listen to the voices of strong Indigenous leadership,” he said. “Obviously, this was well planned on their behalf.

“They strung us along, suggesting that they were undertaking getting advice and that we were going to meet after they received that advice, but they introduced this bill, they sneaked it through the back door.”

The chair of Queensland's truth-telling and healing inquiry, Joshua Creamer, talks to media on Thursday. Picture: Lachie Millard

Mr Crisafulli vowed to repeal the legislation ahead of the Oct­ober state election but said it would be done so with “respect and decency”.

When in opposition, Mr Crisafulli initially supported Labor’s treaty and truth-telling laws, describing them as something Queensland “should embrace wholeheartedly”, insisting treaties were “an ­opportunity to outline a better way forward for Indigenous ­communities”.

He withdrew his support last year after 68 per cent of Queenslanders voted no in the voice referendum and in the face of growing pressure from within the LNP. Mr Crisafulli had previously vowed he would “absolutely not” roll back Indigenous treaty legislation if he became premier.

Urging governments across Australia not to apply the outcome of the voice referendum “to every policy decision for the next decade”, Mr Creamer said a truth-telling process had been “unifying” in Victoria.

“We’ve seen a very different example in Victoria, where the premier actually appeared at that truth-telling inquiry and apologised for a lot of historical wrongs,” he said.

“Very significant steps have been taken down there on the road to reconciliation.”

Ms Simpson said funding allocated to the treaty and truth-­telling would be redirected to “projects and programs that will be measurable and align with improving the lives of Indigenous Queenslanders”.

“Indigenous Queenslanders have been failed over a long ­period of time and we must take tangible steps now to improve that situation,” she said.

“The Truth-telling and Healing Inquiry was never supposed to be a legalistic venture, yet in just four months $1.45m was spent on member remuneration, legal counsel, legal staff, and other legal costs.”

Labor MP Leeanne Enoch, the first Aboriginal woman elected to Queensland parliament, said many older Indigenous people had been preparing to publicly share their stories for the first time. “To have that now ripped away with no opportunity to be part of a bigger story around policy setting … How do we get to the next stage?” she said.

“How do we fully reconcile as a state, and how do we practically close the gap in living outcomes?

“There is nothing wrong with understanding the true history of our state.”