THE SQUIZ

We heard more about the Albanese Government’s priority areas for the Voice yesterday, as Indigenous Australians Minister Linda Burney attempts to reset the conversation on the proposed Indigenous advisory body ahead of a referendum later this year. In a National Press Club address, Burney said she’ll ask the Voice to focus on 4 critical areas for Indigenous Australians: health, education, jobs, and housing. Burney also noted that most of Australia’s ‘Closing the Gap’ targets aren’t on track and said, “We have everything to gain and nothing to lose by supporting the Voice.”

WHAT ELSE DID BURNEY SAY?

Burney’s speech was a reply to the barrage of questions she received from the Coalition during Parliament’s last sitting week in June. Leader Peter Dutton and some of his front bench team are campaigning against the Voice, saying it could reach into “every area of public administration”. Dutton has said that under the current proposal, the Voice could “advise the tax commissioner on tax policy, they can advise the Treasurer on any element of the Budget…” But yesterday, Burney said that the ‘No’ campaign is “making false claims, including providing advice to government would somehow impact the fundamental democratic principle of one vote, one value.” Burney also responded to another of Dutton’s recent comments – on Sunday, Dutton said that the businesses backing the Voice lack “a significant backbone”. Yesterday, Burney said the business community wouldn’t be “impressed by the bully-boy tactics of Peter Dutton.”

SO WHERE IS CAMPAIGNING UP TO?

Burney’s Voice speech comes after recent polls show support for the ‘Yes’ campaign at its lowest levels, with 72% of people in one survey saying not enough has been done to explain the functions of the Voice. Some pundits believe the ‘Yes’ campaign’s window to turn the numbers around is closing because the vote is not that far away… A date has not yet been named, but PM Albanese has previously said the referendum will take place “sometime between late September and December”. Asked yesterday to confirm a date, Burney declined, saying, “I am the wrong person to ask.”