Yes campaigner Frank Brennan says Anthony Albanese called him ‘politically naive’ for publicly raising concerns over voice

New revelations expose the rift that grew between Anthony Albanese and several pro-Yes legal experts who dared question the PM’s model for Indigenous recognition.

Anthony Albanese and voice advocate Frank Brennan.

Anthony Albanese blasted fellow voice campaigner Frank Brennan for “political naivety” and “feeding the No case” in an extraordinary phone call made after the Catholic priest publicly pleaded with him to renegotiate with Peter Dutton over constitutional change. 

The Australian can reveal an “upset” and “animated” Prime Minister had a fractious 12-minute phone call with Father Brennan at the start of the voice campaign, according to the priest, in a moment that symbolised the rift that grew between Mr Albanese and a number of pro-Yes legal experts who questioned his final, broad model for Indigenous recognition.

The revelation comes as Father Brennan reflects in a 3000-word piece on the failed referendum, in which he argues the government’s process for seeking bipartisanship during the voice campaign was “non-existent” and that the idea of the constitutionally enshrined body was “devoid of content”.

In the call to Father Brennan on February 27 last year – about a week after the long-time supporter of constitutional recognition spoke on 2GB about the need for the proposed amendment to be simplified – Mr Albanese criticised Father Brennan’s interventions.

Father Brennan said Mr Albanese told the priest he was ­surprised by his political naivety in deciding to speak on talkback radio about his concerns for the voice. Mr Albanese also expressed his “utter shock” over Father Brennan’s release of a ­letter he sent on November 9, which was published on the 2GB website, that urged Mr Albanese to create a parliamentary committee to ensure everyone had their say on the proposal and to “return to formal bipartisan co-operation”.

“(Bipartisanship) is needed once again if there is to be any prospect of deciding a formula of words for insertion into the Constitution which is acceptable to the key First Nations leaders, the Government and the Opposition,” Father Brennan’s letter said. “Without the support of all three, you know that there is no realistic prospect of ‘the voice’ being inserted in the Constitution.”

The Australian understands Father Brennan and Mr Albanese have not spoken since the phone call in February last year. Mr Albanese would not confirm the details of the call or whether it took place, with a government spokeswoman saying: “The Prime Minister does not comment on private conversations including private conversations with Catholic priests.”

Father Brennan, who was appointed to a senior advisory group set up in 2019 by then-Indigenous Australians minister Ken Wyatt to help co-design a voice, laid out a “simplified draft amendment” after penning his letter to Mr Albanese, which he argued was less legally risky than the government’s proposal. He warned at the time Labor’s wording was an “overreach” compared to what had previously been suggested, while also leaving voters in the dark about the scope of the voice and what it would do.

In a piece published this month reflecting on the period leading up to the defeat of the voice on October 14, Father Brennan said voters who had wished for more detail on the proposal were wrongly treated “as racists or fools”.

“Many voters of goodwill wanted to know what it would look like, how it would make a difference, and how it would not divide the country,” he said in a piece published this month on Eureka Street. “Too often they were treated as racists or fools.”

Father Brennan said Mr Albanese made three major errors that ultimately led to the failure of the voice, which included a “non-existent” effort to land bipartisanship.

“The Prime Minister’s three major errors were: not seeking any bipartisan approach prior to or immediately after the Garma announcement on 22 July 2022; not providing any detail on the voice … and not setting up any parliamentary supervised process for buy-in by all stakeholders until 4 April 2023,” he said.

“By then the words were set in concrete and voters were hardening in their views.”

The Liberal Party announced it would oppose the voice in April 2023, five months after the Nationals said they would campaign against the proposal.

Father Brennan’s comments echo those made by other pro-voice campaigners in recent weeks, including former human rights commissioner Mick Gooda and constitutional law expert Greg Craven.