The Nationals are imploring Australians to listen to the voices of their rural and regional counterparts when it comes to the best way forward to close the Indigenous gap.
The regional-based party which represents the roughly one in three Australians living outside of major cities says Indigenous communities believe a national voice would inhibit local feedback.
“Please seek to understand us, the lived experience that we have and what we can share, what we can bring to those that are most disadvantaged,” Nationals leader David Littleproud said.
Country Liberal Party senator Jacinta Price, who has sat in the Nationals party room since being elected last year, has been elevated to shadow cabinet as the opposition’s new Indigenous Australians spokeswoman.
It brings the number of Nationals in the shadow cabinet to seven, well above their quota within the coalition with the Liberals.
Mr Littleproud said he put forward Senator Price to Opposition Leader Peter Dutton for the role not due to her party affiliation, but because she was the best person for the role.
The Nationals leader insists he didn’t give up anything during negotiations.
“It’s important that we got that balance right and we brought the lived experience,” he said.
“So I’m not sitting here with my chest out, I’m proud of the diversity that our Nationals party room brings.”
The opposition is against enshrining an Indigenous voice in the constitution, saying it will divide Australia.
It is also arguing a national voice would only add a layer of bureaucracy.
Mr Littleproud defended the push to legislate local and regional bodies, denying it would add another level of complexity.
“This is about actually having people on the ground and empowering local elders,” he said.
“You need to sit around the town halls and you actually need local elders and local council to devise the local program because each program will be different.”
But Mr Littleproud said his party would back constitutional recognition of Indigenous Australians, which the Liberals also support.
“I sense my party room would overwhelmingly support that, in fact, so much so that we would help him print the ballot papers,” he said.
– AAP
