Exclusive: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will secure a deal on the Voice referendum wording, avoiding a damaging split between Labor and Indigenous leaders
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will secure a crucial deal on the wording of the Voice referendum, ending weeks of debate and avoiding a damaging split between Labor and the Indigenous leaders spearheading the push.
Three sources with direct knowledge of the negotiations, who all spoke anonymously because the talks are confidential, said the government and Indigenous leaders have agreed on a final set of words to be put to the Australian public in a referendum between October and December. If successful, these words will be written into the Constitution.
Cabinet is expected to sign off on the wording at 9am on Thursday morning, with the prime minister to unveil the final wording soon after. The tweak to the wording, which has not yet been revealed, is designed in part to win over support from conservatives who feared the proposed amendment could open the door to High Court challenges of parliamentary decisions if someone could argue that the Voice body was not properly consulted.
Dreyfus’ seven word addition to the constitutional amendment – “and the legal effect of its representations” – was aimed at guarding against High Court challenges in the event that the government failed to consider the advice of the Voice, a possibility that has emerged as a key sticking point for some conservatives.
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