Labor’s proposed Voice to Parliament won't close the gap for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. All it does is undermine our democracy and create more bureaucratic red tape that gets in the way of the real empowerment needed to change lives and communities.

Instead of platitudes, we believe in frontline, evidence-based solutions to address Closing the Gap targets.

We already have genuine democracy in the form of our state and federal MPs, who are accountable to the people who elected them, not the vague bureaucratic machinations of Labor’s Voice. There are currently 11 Indigenous politicians in our Federal Parliament.

Fundamentally, every citizen is equal before the law. That equality is part of the bedrock of our Australian democracy.

That’s too important to risk on Labor’s ambiguous proposal.

The promise of our free and liberal democracy is the pride of every Australian, no matter their race, culture, or background.

The Nationals stand for real, practical solutions and we support preserving our equal and free democracy.