The New South Wales government will review part of its state treaty consultation plan, a key election promise, in the wake of the crushing federal referendum defeat on the voice to parliament.
The government isn’t confirming the appointment of three commissioners to oversee the process as planned – and previously outlined by the Aboriginal affairs and treaty minister, David Harris, in April. Sources say the consultation process and timeline will now be reviewed.
The government was unsure how to handle the situation given voters had roundly rejected the federal Indigenous voice, according to sources, however the premier, Chris Minns, insisted consultation would go ahead.
A senior Labor figure said there would be “strategic adjustments” in the wake of the “significant result” on the weekend.
“It would not be wise to lock in a strategy four days after a referendum,” they said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “The government is going to respect that First Nations leadership in NSW is pretty shellshocked.”
Hope of a treaty with First Nations people in Queensland now appears doomed, with the opposition pledging to repeal existing legislation and the premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, saying it needs bipartisan support to proceed.
In NSW, some Labor MPs said the hesitation in pushing ahead with their plan was less about concerns stemming from negative voter sentiment in Labor heartlands, and more about assessing the appetite for another process among a community in mourning.
“There are a lot of conversations going on behind the scenes about what comes next,” a Labor source said. Another said: “No one has a clue.”
Harris in April quietly announced he planned to appoint three commissioners, alongside a secretariat, to oversee a year-long treaty consultation with the First Nations community.
“They’ll bring a report back to the parliament and then we will then work to set up a process that conforms to the views that we see,” the minister told the National Indigenous Times six months ago.
“The important thing is, in this term of government there’s something that’s legislated so that the government’s moving forward [and] will be able to work within an agreed parameter.”
Since then, the government has refused to comment on what specifically the process would look like or when it would begin, other than sometime in this term of parliament and after the referendum, no matter its result.
Asked about the plan on Thursday, Harris would not confirm if or when commissioners would be appointed. He said while the government had advocated a yes vote in the referendum it would also “respect and accept” the state’s 60% no vote.
“The NSW government took to the March election a commitment to starting a consultation process with Aboriginal peoples about treaty,” he said.
“That consultation process remains our commitment. We don’t have anything new to say about that today. We will have more to say over the weeks ahead.”
In an interview with the Guardian in September, Minns said he was open to implementing a state voice to parliament or one of the other models being implemented as part of processes already under way elsewhere in Australia.
He said it would be up to Aboriginal communities and the government would gauge that through the $5m consultation.
Since Saturday’s result, he has repeatedly highlighted the challenges ahead for NSW in achieving a treaty.
“Our position is we’re going to engage with First Nations people,” he said on Thursday.
“We’ve got a mandate in place to begin the process of the treaty. I’m not going to lie, it’s going to be a very difficult process. It’s been ongoing for many years in other states and jurisdictions around the country.”
He said the state could develop a process in this term of parliament without waiting for an election to gauge support, but also that the government would be “responsible and anything we bring in we’ll bring to the people of NSW”.
The NSW opposition leader, Mark Speakman, said he would not support a state voice but respected the government’s “mandate to consult” on treaty.
“The opposition’s focus is instead on the practical and urgent delivery of policies and programs in Closing the Gap partnerships that overcome Indigenous disadvantage,” Speakman said.
