‘Voice’ process won’t be rushed: minister

CANBERRA: Indigenous Australians Minister Linda Burney says an ‘‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice’’ in parliament will not be rushed, and the detail is already available ahead of a referendum.

Burney said there was already a lot of detail available about how the body would function.

While the body was an important issue, the government would aim to pursue as much consensus as possible about the path to establish it, she said.

‘‘We will not be rushed, and it is very important that this belongs to the Australian people, not to politicians,’’ she said yesterday.

A potential question to be asked in the referendum would be: ‘‘Do you support an alteration to the constitution that establishes an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice?’’

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said details about the body, such as its function and how it operated, would be worked out following consultation but it would only act as an advisory body and not as a third chamber of parliament.

Burney said previous work on the organisation by Aboriginal leaders would not be jettisoned and would be part of the Government’s consideration.

While a timeline for the referendum has not been finalised, Labor reportedly prefers holding the vote next year.

Greens First Nations spokeswoman and senator Lidia Thorpe said she welcomed the referendum and wanted all elements of the Uluru Statement to be enacted.

But she called on the Government to implement a treaty with Indigenous people and to follow through on all recommendations from the royal commission into deaths in custody.

‘‘Our priority should be black justice in this country, our priority should be about saving lives today, not waiting for a referendum,’’ she said.

Thorpe also led a push in the Senate for the implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People (Undrip) through her private senator’s Bill.

Thorpe’s Bill will establish a framework to implement Undrip and put in place annual reporting mechanisms.

‘‘Undrip is an opportunity for the new Labor government to prove that they are committed to action, not symbolism, for First Nations people,’’ she told the Senate.

First Nations Labor senator Pat Dodson said the Government agreed with the intent of the Bill and should ‘‘align our actions with these principles’’.

‘‘While nonbinding, the declaration carries significant moral force. The government supports the aspirational principles underlying the declaration,’’ he said.

First Nations Country Liberal Party senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price branded the Bill ‘‘virtue signalling’’ and called for more practical action. — AAP