Category Archives: Linda Burney

Arrernte traditional owners urge PM to ‘come back and talk to the elders’ amid Alice Springs crisis

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Strong Grandmothers of the Central Desert group wants Anthony Albanese and other politicians to hear concerns at grassroots level

Arrernte traditional owners are urging the prime minster to return to Alice Springs to talk to elders on the ground following his visit last week in response to a surge in crime and antisocial behaviour in the Northern Territory town.

Eastern Arrernte woman Elaine Peckham, senior Western Arrrernte woman Doreen Carroll and Southern Arrernte and Pitjantjatjara, Yankunytjatjara and Ngaanyatjarra woman Brenda Shields form part of the Strong Grandmothers of the Central Desert group, who have come together to advocate for their community and push for change.

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Senator may go against party room on voice – as it happened

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This blog is now closed

Should governments have acted sooner on alcohol restrictions in Alice Springs?

The Northern Territory chief minister Natasha Fyles and the minister for Indigenous affairs Linda Burney have appeared on ABC Radio after the announcements in Alice Springs yesterday.

It was the previous coalition government that walked away and left the Northern Territory with no measures.

I had expressed that there needs to be some very, very real thoughts put into our alcohol restrictions.

Do you think it took too long?

Look, I’m not going to get into whether they’ve taken too long, If you ask the people in Alice Springs, the answer might be yes.

I went to Stuart Park last night and met with local people living in town camps ... many of who had obviously experienced violence. And one of the things that really shocked me is, I was talking to the local member Marion Scrymgour who had visited the hospital and there are 16 beds in ICU, 14 of those were taken by Aboriginal women who had been beaten ... I think alcohol is one of the major contributors to some of the problems.

It’s about balance – but being able to drink is not more important than being safe, in my view.

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Linda Burney reveals draft timing for Indigenous voice to parliament vote

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Indigenous Australians minister says yes campaign likely to begin in late February with vote held as early as August

Australians could vote as early as August on whether an Indigenous voice to parliament should be constitutionally enshrined.

The Indigenous Australians minister, Linda Burney, told Nine newspapers the government plans to introduce legislation to parliament in March to set up the referendum.

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Advocates call for urgent action after two ‘incredibly tragic’ Aboriginal deaths in custody

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Linda Burney says rates of Indigenous incarceration and deaths in custody 30 years after royal commission are a ‘national shame’

Advocates say the “heartbreaking” deaths of two Aboriginal people in custody within days of each other in Western Australia over Christmas should jolt state and federal governments into urgent action.

A 41-year-old First Nations woman died in a Perth hospital on Christmas Eve after suffering a “medical episode” in Wandoo rehabilitation prison 13 days earlier.

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Claims Labor lacks detail on Indigenous voice are ‘rubbish’, Linda Burney tells Woodford folk festival

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‘We’re going to succeed with the referendum,’ Noel Pearson tells crowd ahead of 2023 vote

Linda Burney has rejected as “rubbish” suggestions that Labor has not released enough detail about the Indigenous voice to parliament, as the Liberals continue to call for a free vote in the referendum.

The Indigenous Australians minister and Anthony Albanese both gave major speeches at the Woodford folk festival on Wednesday, countering claims from the Liberal National Coalition that the body would not help improve outcomes for First Nations people.

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Remains of 18 Indigenous people held by UK museums return to Australia

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Return is part of painstaking effort to recover thousands of ancestors stolen from traditional lands who now lie in more than 20 countries

The remains of 18 Indigenous people have been returned to Australia by two British museums, part of the laborious and painstaking effort to recover thousands of ancestors stolen from their traditional lands which now lie in more than 20 countries around the world.

At midnight Australia time on Wednesday, the Oxford University Museum of Natural History and the Pitt Rivers Museum returned 17 ancestors to the custodianship of the federal government, which will hold them while further research is undertaken “to determine the traditional custodians”. Another was given to the custodianship of the south-east First Nations people of South Australia, who were represented by Robyn Campbell.

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‘Not fit for purpose’: government looks to amend ‘antiquated’ referendum laws ahead of voice vote

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Linda Burney says government will propose changes to modernise the century-old act before the end of the year

A leading constitutional expert says Australia’s century-old laws around referendums are “not fit for purpose”, suggesting the government could look to amend rules around donations, funding disclosures and social media advertising before the voice to parliament vote.

Linda Burney, the minister for Indigenous Australians, said the government would propose changes to “modernise” the Referendum Act before the end of the year, and promised a civics campaign and more information about the voice campaign in early 2023.

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How would an Indigenous voice work and what are people saying about it?

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In press conference with NBA superstar Shaquille O’Neal, PM reveals he has been talking with sporting figures about supporting campaign

The Albanese government has put forward a preferred form of words to insert into the constitution to enshrine an Indigenous voice to parliament, starting with a simple question for us all to vote on.

“We should consider asking our fellow Australians something as simple as: ‘Do you support an alteration to the constitution that establishes an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice?’” Anthony Albanese said in July during a landmark speech at the Garma festival in Arnhem Land.

There shall be a body, to be called the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.

It may make representations to parliament and the executive government on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

The parliament shall, subject to this constitution, have power to make laws with respect to the composition, functions, powers and procedures of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.

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Shaquille O’Neal meets with PM in support of Indigenous voice to parliament

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Anthony Albanese announces the NBA legend will be part of the effort to mobilise support in the lead-up to a referendum

The prime minister is usually a towering figure in the national imagination, but on Saturday Anthony Albanese was quite literally dwarfed by Shaquille O’Neal during an announcement the NBA star would be lending his support to the campaign for an Indigenous voice to parliament.

The former LA Lakers centre is in Australia for a speaking tour and reached out to the government to inform himself about the proposal for the First Nations voice, Albanese said.

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‘This joint is important’: Linda Burney issues ultimatum over future of Redfern’s National Centre of Indigenous Excellence

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Minister for Indigenous Australians says negotiating organisations have one week to agree on future of community centre

Linda Burney has given the organisations negotiating the future of the National Centre of Indigenous Excellence in Redfern one week to determine the future of the social and community hub, before the government intervenes.

In a heated community meeting on Friday, the minister for Indigenous Australians said her priority was for the tenants of the George Street facility to be given permanency, for the centre to stay open, and for its 50 staffmembers to keep their jobs.

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‘It’s not wise to be rushed’: Linda Burney says government will consult extensively on Indigenous voice

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Minister says Labor’s plan is ‘five years in the making’ as she seeks to clear up confusion about approach

The Indigenous Australians minister, Linda Burney, says there will be extensive consultation with Indigenous leaders and engagement with the wider Australian community as the Labor government seeks to enshrine a voice to parliament in the constitution.

Burney, speaking at the Garma festival in Arnhem Land, also said Labor had a plan “five years in the making”, as she sought to clear up questions and confusion about the government’s approach.

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Australia still failing to hit more than two-thirds of Closing the Gap targets, new data shows

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Minister for Indigenous Australians says more is needed to address systemic disadvantage as data shows four of 13 targets on track

The nation is failing to address the systemic disadvantages experienced by First Nations communities, according to the latest Closing the Gap data released by the Productivity Commission on Thursday.

Four of the 13 targets are on track: the birth weights of Indigenous babies, preschool kids attending early childhood education, and youth detention rates are trending in the right direction, while gains are being seen in land and sea rights.

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Linda Burney launches campaign to raise support for referendum on First Nations voice to parliament

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Minister for Indigenous Australians tells crowd to ‘be loud and proud’ in expressing support for referendum

The government’s campaign to raise support for a referendum on a First Nations voice to parliament was launched to a packed and enthusiastic meeting in the inner west of Sydney on Thursday evening.

Australia’s new minister for Indigenous Australians, Linda Burney, received a standing ovation after she told the crowd at Marrickville town hall the Uluru Statement was an “incredibly generous invitation to the Australian people to walk together with First Nations people, and the journey begins here in Marrickville”.

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Linda Burney says investigating Youpla funeral fund will be ‘top of my agenda’

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Incoming Indigenous affairs minster says predicament of families affected by collapse of predatory funeral fund is ‘totally unacceptable’

Linda Burney will make an investigation into the predatory funeral fund ACBF-Youpla one of her “highest priorities” on taking over as Indigenous affairs minister, after Guardian Australia revealed new details of its collapse, which left more than 13,000 people facing the probable loss of everything they had paid into the fund.

“I assure people that this is the top of my agenda, probably the first thing that needs to be resolved, and I will do that carefully,” Burney told Guardian Australia.

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Indigenous voice to parliament to have no veto power under interim plans

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Labor says the current proposal fails to enable the voice to provide full and frank advice and to be secure

The federal government will be obliged to consult the Indigenous voice to parliament when crafting laws on race, native title and racial discrimination that impact upon Aboriginal Australians.

But the body will have no power to overturn policy or prevent laws coming into force, according to interim proposals.

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Absence of Morrison at Uluru event ‘more than an insult’ to Indigenous Australians

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Exclusive: Labor senator Pat Dodson says PM’s failure to show up to climb closure celebrations demonstrates his ‘shallowness’

Labor senator Pat Dodson has blasted the prime minister for his absence at Sunday night’s celebrations of the closing of the climb at Uluru as “more than an insult” to First Nations people.

Sitting alongside Labor colleagues Linda Burney, Malarndirri McCarthy and Warren Snowdon, Dodson chastised Scott Morrison’s failure to progress the Uluru Statement from the Heart, saying it demonstrated he’s a man in need of “an epiphany”.

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Labor pledges $60m to help victims of domestic violence rebuild their lives

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Bill Shorten says money raised from banking fairness fund will provide tailored support packages for families

“Instead of asking ‘why did she stay’, we need to ask ‘where could she go’.”

Reframing the question of what options victims of family and domestic violence have in deciding to leave is behind Labor’s latest policy announcement which would see $60m committed to a program which helps tailor support packages for families needing to rebuild their lives.

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