Liberal MP Julian Leeser quits Liberals frontbench over party’s stance on Indigenous voice to parliament

The opposition spokesman for Indigenous affairs Julian Leeser says he resigned from the Liberal frontbench because he wanted to tell his children he stood up for something he ‘believed in’.

Julian Leeser, the opposition’s spokesman for Indigenous affairs, resigns from the Liberal Party frontbench. Picture: NCA NewsWire/ Ben Symons

Julian Leeser has resigned from shadow cabinet and has vowed to campaign Yes ahead of the Indigenous voice referendum, after the Liberal Party opposed a national voice enshrined in the Constitution.

In a press conference to announce his resignation, Mr Leeser said he had resigned on a “point of principle” and that he wanted to tell his children he stood up for something he “believed in”.

“No-one else in our party room has this experience,” he said. “I think I’m in a unique situation.

“I’m resigning without rancour but on a point of principle and I think what I want to be able to say to my children in the future is that your father stood up for something he believes in and that’s really important and something all of us should do”.

Mr Leeser, who has been involved in working on the voice for a decade, said it was a topic that people have “reasonable disagreements”, when asked why he had not been able to bring the Liberal Party round to his side.

“I respect the experiences they bring to the parliament, the communities they represent and the like and they have a different history on these issues to the history I have,” he said.

“I have ultimately come to the position I have because I’ve been here from day one as a supporter of the idea of this.”

Mr Leeser called for both sides in the voice debate to listen to each other and refrain from calling the other side “racist” or accuse them of wanting “special privileges”.

“If you’re a leader or advocate for the “no” case, then you have a responsibility to listen to the aspirations of Indigenous Australians who see value in a Voice,” he said.

“No matter where we are in this debate, we all must find a way to walk a mile in another’s shoes.

“There’s always been a place in this country, in our heart and soul, for civil debate, for discussion that helps us find common ground and in this debate, that means not calling those who disagree with you racist or inferring they come to the table in bad faith.

“And it means not inferring that those who disagree with you want special privileges.”

However he criticised the Albanese government’s handling of the voice referendum, while expressing his support for Opposition Leader Peter Dutton.

“In Peter Dutton we have the most experienced and tested Opposition Leader in our history,” he said.

“Peter Dutton is a man who kept our country safe for nine years and I look forward to working for his election.”

Mr Leeser also criticised the way Anthony Albanese had run the process to enshrine the voice, saying that it lacked “bipartisanship”.

“I don’t believe the government has handled this process particularly well and I’ve been very critical of the Prime Minister and of the government,” he said.

“We had a proper bipartisan process up until the 2022 election.

“Some of the previous reports even were given both to the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition.

“We worked through things together, but that changed in 2022.

“And you had a situation over the summer where the Prime Minister had said look at the Calma-Langton report but couldn’t deal with the detail himself of some of the issues raised there.”

Earlier, in a statement posted on Facebook, Mr Leeser said he remained a proud Liberal committed to his party, his constituents in the Sydney electorate of Berowra and the leadership of Peter Dutton but, on the voice, he disagreed with his party’s position.

“Unlike almost any other party in the parliament, the Liberal Party gives backbenchers the freedom to champion the ideas they believe in. Because I intend to campaign for a Yes vote I have resigned from the shadow ministry,” Mr Leeser said.

“I want to assure you that I remain a proud Liberal committed to my party, the people of Berowra, and the leadership of Peter Dutton. My resignation as a frontbencher is not about personality, it’s about keeping faith with an issue that I have been working on for almost a decade.

“I’ve also tried to keep faith with my Liberal values. My desire to conserve our institutions like the Australian Constitution with my desire to seek better outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians.”

Mr Leeser has been the opposition’s Indigenous Australians and legal affairs spokesman and has worked on various models for an Indigenous voice to parliament and the executive government for nearly a decade.

A week ago, Mr Leeser presented a blueprint for the voice that would let parliament legislate who in the executive government the advisory body could talk to and what it could talk about.

In his proposal, a voice would still be enshrined in the Constitution but parliament would be given ultimate power to decide how it works.

Two days later, the Opposition Leader and the Liberal Party announced it would oppose a national voice in the Constitution and instead advocate for legislated regional and local advisory bodies. The Liberal Party supports constitutional recognition.

“I will in the weeks ahead be arguing for the changes to the referendum wording that I detailed in my National Press Club address last Monday,” Mr Leeser said.

“The Press Club model for the voice – is constitutionally sound, gives Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians a place in our founding document, and recognises the supremacy of Parliament in our constitutional system. It improves the model put forward by the government and its referendum working group. This will also improve its chances for success at the ballot box.

“I acknowledge the support and good grace of Peter Dutton throughout the process and the faith he has shown in me. As shadow minister I have travelled with Peter and seen him listen to and engage with Indigenous leaders and Indigenous people in the community. I know he has a genuine desire to improve the lives of Indigenous Australians.

“However, on the voice Referendum we find ourselves in different places. People of goodwill can disagree.”

The country’s first Indigenous cabinet minister and former West Australian MP Ken Wyatt last week quit the party over its stance.

Mr Leeser said he had “many respectful discussions” with his colleagues about the voice, but ultimately had not been able to persuade them.

Liberal shadow cabinet members will be bound by the party’s voice position, which is why Mr Leeser has resigned and moved to the back bench.