An Australian Liberal shadow minister has resigned from his position to support The Voice referendum.
On April 11, Shadow Attorney-General and Minister for Indigenous Australians Julian Leeser announced that he had quit the shadow cabinet to campaign for a “yes” vote on the Indigenous Voice to Parliament.
The Voice is an initiative to embed an advisory body into the Constitution that will have the power to make “representations” to Parliament on issues deemed to impact Indigenous people.
While Liberal shadow cabinet ministers have to follow the party position and cannot cast a free vote, backbenchers are not bound by the same rule.
Addressing the press after resigning, Leeser said his decision was not about personality but about trying to “keep faith” with his belief.
“I believe in a national voice, drawn from local and regional bodies, and support the referendum being put this year.
“I believe the voice can help move the dial on Indigenous education, health, housing, safety and economic development.”
Leeser also noted that he had many discussions with his Liberal colleagues about The Voice over the past year but was unable to persuade them.
“It’s clear that the party room and I have taken a different position in relation to The Voice,” he said.
“I resign without rancour or bitterness, and I remain a loyal liberal fully committed to the leadership of Peter Dutton.”
At the same time, Leeser said he would push the Labor government to amend its proposal on The Voice to improve the chances of the referendum’s success.
“The government must seriously engage with Coalition voters, and it hasn’t done so to date,” Leeser said.
“This failure could ultimately put the referendum at risk. An all-or-nothing approach could deliver nothing. That’s why we must find common ground.”
Response from Other Politicians
Following Leeser’s resignation, MP Bridget Archer and Senator Andrew Bragg, two Liberal politicians backing the Voice, expressed their support for his decision.“This referendum is too important to play politics, and it is not good enough to oppose the referendum on process grounds.”
While Labor Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong praised Leeser’s decision, she said it was disappointing that the Liberal leader had chosen to oppose The Voice.
“Julian Leeser has shown real strength today. He put his principles ahead of partisan politics, and we welcome that,” she said.
“It can’t have been easy for him to do. Can’t have been easy for him to relinquish portfolios that he cares so deeply about.”
In a social media post, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the opposition leader had underestimated Liberal and National voters who supported The Voice.
“Peter Dutton has underestimated the number of Liberal and National voters who will show generosity and goodwill and vote yes to constitutional recognition in this referendum.” He said.
Opposition Leader Calls on the Prime Minister to Apologise to Leeser
Meanwhile, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said Albanese should apologise to Leeser for the “personal attacks” he had endured recently.“The personal attacks that have been levelled against him over the course of the last couple of months, including by the prime minister, I think have been quite disgraceful.
“I think in light of Julian’s announcement today, it’s proper that people, including the prime minister, should apologise to Julian Leeser.”
At the same time, Dutton warned that Labor’s proposal did not produce the best outcome for Indigenous people while bringing significant changes to the current government system.
“I would say to all Australians: please go and get a better understanding of the details of what it is that is being promised,” he said.
“The form of words that the prime minister has on the table at the moment will see our system of government change dramatically from what’ve we known in our entire lifetime.”
