Voice referendum date announced: What you need to know
Australians will be asked whether they support an independent advisory body for First Nations people in the constitution.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has revealed the referendum on the Indigenous Voice to Parliament will be held on October 14.
The announcement was made during his visit to Adelaide on Wednesday morning at a Yes campaign event.
What you need to know:
Voting is compulsory for everyone aged 18 and above who is registered.
The ballot will ask whether you support enshrining an independent advisory body for First Nations people in the constitution.
To vote, all you need to do is write either Yes or No in the box.
For the Yes vote to pass, it needs a national majority and majorities in at least four of the six states.
The idea of having a Voice came from Indigenous people themselves, through the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
🤔 Why should I care?
Yes campaigners say that the Voice is needed to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in our Constitution, and because it would lead to governments making better decisions on matters that affect the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
No campaigners say too many details of how the advisory panel will operate are unknown, having a body for only one group of Australians will polarise the country and a 'yes' vote could prompt endless litigation.
🗣️ What they said:
Anthony Albanese, Prime Minister: "Because we will have a way forward together. On October 14, there’s nothing for us to lose and there’s so much for Australia to gain. There is no downside here — only upside. Friends, many times when I’ve spoken about this change I’ve asked - if not now, when?"
"This is it. October 14 is our time. It’s our chance."
Albanese responding to a question from A Current Affair's Allison Langdon about the Voice being 'confusing': "It’s pretty straightforward. The first bit is recognition, then it says there’ll be a body that will give advice and then its composition and functions and procedures will be still subject to the Parliament," he said.
“So it doesn‘t change the way that laws are made, it’s not a funding body, just an advisory body.”
Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, Shadow Indigenous Affairs Minister: “When the Uluru Statement first came out, I understood how that process was developed. There are invite only individuals to those dialogues and that particular event. And 250 unelected individuals don’t have the right to sign on behalf of three per cent of the country and claim that we’re all one homogenous group."
"The process was undemocratic, it was flawed.”
🗞️ Want to keep reading?
Full instructions on how to vote.
The ballot paper feature that's divided opinion.
Anthony Albanese's controversial A Current Affair interview.
Read the one-page Uluru Statement from the Heart.
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