This morning Opposition Leader Peter Dutton appears to be backing away from his commitment to hold a second referendum on recognition of Indigenous Australians in the constitution if he is elected prime minister.
Last month, Mr Dutton told Sky News he would hold a referendum to recognise First Australians in the constitution if he was elected, saying: “I believe very strongly it is the right thing to do.”
But speaking to reporters in Canberra this morning about the federal opposition’s Indigenous policy, Mr Dutton said it was clear Australians were “over” the referendum process.
“Look, all of our policy, obviously as I said on Saturday night, is going to be reviewed in the process that Kerrynne [Liddle] and Jacinta [Nampijinpa Price] will lead now,” he said.
“I think that [constitutional recognition] is important, but I think it’s clear that the Australian public is probably over the referendum process for some time.”
The position puts him at odds with some of his Coalition colleagues, including Senator Price.
