Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says he has faith in Australians to ignore misinformation about the Indigenous voice to parliament and support the sensible proposal.
Ahead of federal parliament returning for the first time this year, Mr Albanese will call the voice a chance to build a better future for the nation in a keynote speech to the Chifley Research Centre conference.
He will urge Australians to support the proposition of an Indigenous voice as a national achievement for all to share.
Mr Albanese will reflect on the successful 1967 referendum when 90 per cent of Australians voted to remove a provision in the constitution which said Indigenous people would not be included in the census.
He will say in 2023, 56 years later, a new generation of Australians will have the opportunity to go one better and add something to the nation's birth certificate.
"Instead of removing a provision that no longer speaks for who we are, we can make a change that speaks for the future we seek to build," he will say.
"We can vote not to remove something negative but to add something positive: to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in our nation's birth certificate."
Mr Albanese will say the referendum is about recognition and consultation and it is not a radical proposal but a sensible one.
The draft wording is also up for discussion, with the prime minister saying he is open to "improvements or alterations" to the words he proposed at the Garma festival more than six months ago.
He will also defend the proposal from criticism that there needs to be more detail about how the voice to parliament would operate if the referendum is successful.
He will say the authors of the constitution knew it was up to parliament to make laws on detail.
"The constitution contains the power and then parliament uses its democratic authority to build the institution and renovate it as needed," he will say.
"At this year's referendum Australians will be voting on the principle ... of recognition and consultation, the principle of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people having a say when it comes to the decisions that affect them."
Mr Albanese will say enshrining the voice will send a message of strength about what it will achieve as an "enduring national priority".
While Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has not yet confirmed whether the Liberal Party will support the referendum, the prime minister will continue to seek co-operation from all sides.
He will welcome "constructive contribution" to the legislative process, the shape of the campaign and the success of the referendum's outcome.
"There are always those who want to create confusion and provoke division, to try and stall progress," he will say.
"But moments of national decision, such as this referendum, are also an opportunity for our people to show their best qualities: their generosity, their sense of fairness, their optimism for the future.
"I'm optimistic for the success of the referendum because I've always been optimistic about the character of the Australian people."
