Where Australia’s top businesses stand on the Voice to Parliament vote
The biggest Australian companies have weighed in on the Voice to Parliament, but there’s a stance not one of them is taking.
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On October 14, Australians will cast their votes on a proposed new Voice to Parliament — but all of the nation’s top 20 public companies have already had their say.
Of the top 20 businesses listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), a whopping 65 per cent have thrown their support behind the Yes vote, with 13 businesses in favour of constitutional change.
None of the top 20 firms have backed the No campaign, with the remaining seven taking a neutral stance on the issue by refusing to back either side.
All ‘big four’ banks, along with supermarkets Coles and Woolworths, Kmart and Bunnings-owner Wesfarmers, Telstra and resource giants BHP, Rio Tinto, Woodside and Newcrest have backed the proposal.
The companies with a neutral position are Aristocrat Leisure, CSL, Fortescue Metals, Goodman Group, Macquarie Group, Santos and WiseTech Global.
Of Australia’s largest privately-owned companies, Gina Rinehart’s top-ranked Hancock Prospecting has taken a neutral position while second-placed Visy Industries is in favour, with its executive chairman Anthony Pratt donating $1 million to the Yes campaign.
Qantas is another high-profile supporter of the Voice. It has even extended free travel to members of the Yes23 campaign group.
The national carrier is also featuring the Yes23 campaign logo on three of its aircraft.
Insurer IAG, Origin Energy, BP, Australian Unity and Xero are among other large businesses in support of the Voice.
The Business Council of Australia and the Minerals Council of Australia have both backed the Yes vote, as have the ‘big four’ accounting firms PwC, EY, Deloitte and KPMG.
Many businesses have announced their support as part of their Reconciliation Action Plans (RAPs), while others have gone further, backing the Yes campaign with funding.
BHP, Rio Tinto and Wesfarmers have each donated $2 million to the Yes campaign, a move that has been questioned by former NT chief minister and CEO of Hancock Agriculture, Adam Giles.
“I see a little bit of commentary about whether shareholders might have some sort of class action against companies, and I think they have every right to,” Mr Giles told The Australian.
“It’d be interesting to see that tested. But if you’re spending two or three million dollars of shareholders’ money and profits on a political campaign which is only one side of a story, I don’t think that’s the best use of shareholders’ funds.”
There has been a public backlash against John Farnham for his decision to allow the Yes campaign to use his iconic 1980s song You’re the Voice and it remains to be seen whether businesses supporting the Yes campaign will be subject to the same fate.
However, former Prime Minister, John Howard has claimed Australians are feeling resentment about the “condescending advice” from large corporations and sporting codes publicly supporting the Voice to Parliament.
“My view is that large companies should be neutral because they have a lot of employees, they have a lot of shareholders, they have a lot of customers and there’s no way they can speak for them,” Mr Howard said.
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Originally published as Where Australia’s top businesses stand on the Voice to Parliament vote
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