No voter Sussan Ley attacks Anthony Albanese on Voice referendum

The federal deputy Liberal Party leader outlined her view on the proposed constitutional change in a speech to parliament on May 20, 2023.

Ms Ley was speaking during debate on a bill needed for the Voice proposition to be put to voters in a referendum in coming months.

"When I go to the ballot box later this year and vote no, I will do so with conviction but also with a heavy heart.

"If the question were different, enshrining Indigenous Australians as our first Australians in the constitution, the recognition that enjoys bipartisan support in this place, and this was accompanied by legislated local and regional voices, then I would enthusiastically vote yes."

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Ms Ley attacked the approach of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese through much of her speech, accusing him of starving Australians of crucial details.

"He has been deliberately tricky," she said.

Ms Ley said Mr Albanese implied voters should back the Voice if they are horrified by Indigenous children in crisis and want to assist.

"Sadly it will not help," she said.

"It will add an extraordinary layer of bureaucracy to every single decision that governments make, adding time, adding unnecessary complexity and keeping communities waiting even longer for real measures that make a real difference."

Ms Ley cited a letter she received from Albury priest Father Peter MacLeod-Miller stating "it would be a tragedy if the referendum left us more divided than we have been before and more fearful of offering a range of perspectives because of righteous intolerance".

"People of goodwill can disagree and in this referendum, people of goodwill will disagree," Ms Ley said.

"But increasingly this Prime Minister acts as the self-proclaimed 'moral arbiter' of Australia's national conscience, not as a leader seeking consensus."

Ms Ley urged Mr Albanese to rethink his approach.

"Instead of insulting and demeaning the millions of Australians who are going to vote no, I urge the Prime Minister to work constructively with the Opposition to legislate what we can agree on and then go to the Australian people with a referendum question that enjoys bipartisan support - constitutional recognition backed by legislated voices," she said.

Ms Ley said the referendum was not about minor change with a new section of the constitution looming.

"This is exactly why the High Court would eventually be called to interpret the Voice's full scope and powers - and no one can predict the outcome of that interpretation on our system," she said.

The Liberal veteran's speech followed Indi MP Helen Haines telling parliament last week that she supported the Voice.

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