Where Australia's top think tanks stand on the Voice
Corporate Australia has showed its hand and largely swung behind the Voice. But what about our top think tanks?
Corporate Australia has, largely, shown its hand on where it stands on the Indigenous Voice to Parliament and the upcoming referendum. A string of our biggest companies including Qantas, CBA, Telstra and Woolworths, to name just a few, have said they support Yes.
But what about other influential bodies such as think tanks?
Capital Brief asked the major think tanks for their position on the increasingly contentious issue. What we found was a varying approach across the organisations that was not necessarily aligned with their perceived ideological bent. Some were willing to wholeheartedly support the Yes campaign, while others said they didn't have the specific expertise to weigh in. Some were choosing to contribute to the discussion by providing information from the Yes and No camps to members and the public. Others are staying silent.
Here's how eight think tanks are positioning themselves on The Voice.
Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA)
Position: Yes
Statement: "A First Nations Voice is an economic reform as much as a social one. For too long, policy intended to improve the lives and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and their communities have failed to deliver meaningful outcomes. Efforts to understand the repeated failing of policy to deliver better outcomes, including work by the Productivity Commission, identify that a critical factor contributing to poor policy design and implementation is the failure to seek or effectively incorporate the perspectives, insights and preferences of the those that these policies are directed towards, namely Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities.
"A Voice to Parliament will rectify that in a meaningful and sustained way. Enshrining the Voice in the Constitution is necessary to ensure its permanency. In addition to being good policy, the approach to arrive at this proposal was designed and led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and has broad support. The proposal seeks to work within, not displace or disrupt, our existing system of governance. The Voice represents good governance and good policy and will support better outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities over the long term. For these reasons, CEDA supports a Voice to Parliament. We have hosted a range of events and forums to provide information on the Voice and increase understanding and awareness."
