Anthony Albanese will outline his vision for 2023 and warn democracy is under threat at a speech at a music festival today.
The prime minister will also confirm his timeline for a referendum on the Indigenous Voice to Parliament, to be held in the second half of next year.
Mr Albanese will speak about 3pm at the Woodford Folk Festival, just north of Brisbane, in honour of former PM Bob Hawke, who died in 2019.
Anthony Albanese (pictured at the cricket on Tuesday) will outline his vision for 2023 and warn democracy is under threat at a speech at a music festival today
Honouring Mr Hawke, a big fan of the festival who frequently made speeches there, the prime minister will vow not to waste his time in office.
‘Bob Hawke left a great a legacy, and that’s because he understood that for any legacy to have staying power requires a government that lasts the distance,’ he will say.
‘The words that characterised his leadership – reconciliation, accord, consensus – were all about us heading in the same direction as a nation.
‘No one’s time in government is infinite. The clock is always ticking.
‘But I firmly believe that a good way to make the best possible use of that time is to carry Bob’s example in your heart.’
Mr Albanese will speak in honour of former PM Bob Hawke, who died in 2019 (pictured at the 2017 festival)
Honouring Mr Hawke, a big fan of the festival who frequently made speeches there (like this one in 2015), the prime minister will vow not to waste his time in office
Mr Albanese will focus part of his speech on the Indigenous Voice, which he plans to legislate early in the new year and hold a referendum on by Christmas.
‘When Woodford takes place next year, the referendum on the Voice to Parliament will have been held,’ he will say.
‘This is an opportunity for all of us to be a part of enriching our nation and being even stronger in the future.
‘We live in the world’s greatest nation, but an even greater Australia is so tantalisingly within our reach.’
The PM will say the Voice would ‘ensure consultation on matters that directly affect Indigenous Australians, such as education, health, housing, and justice issues’.
He will argue a successful referendum would remove ‘the torment of our powerlessness’ indigenous people felt.
‘Momentum is growing. Local government, community groups, churches, business, trade unions, and sporting codes have joined every state and territory government in pledging support for a constitutionally enshrined Voice to parliament. This can be an inclusive moment of national unity and reconciliation,’ he will say.
Mr Albanese will speak about 3pm at the Woodford Folk Festival, just north of Brisbane
The festival is being held for the first time since 2019 after Covid cancellations
However, opposition to the Voice is also gearing up to convince Australians to vote no, and the National Party in November said it would not support it.
The Liberals are yet to decide whether they will support or oppose the Voice, or allow MPs to freely support either camp.
Mr Albanese will say he ‘respects everyone’s right to make their own decision on the referendum, but I encourage Australians to consider the generous and gracious request from First Nations people’.
The PM will recap the policy achievements of his busy first months in power since winning the May 21 election, as the first Labor PM since 2013.
His seven months included passing sweeping industrial relations laws, setting a 43 per cent renewable energy target, boosting the minimum wage, increasing paid parental leave, and cutting the cost of childcare.
Another piece of legislation he passed, created the National Anti-Corruption Commission, will get special mention in his speech as he warns no country is safe from sliding into authoritarianism.
‘We have established a National Anti-Corruption Commission because restoring integrity and trust to our politics is essential if we are to maintain the health of our democracy,’ he will say.
‘I urge anyone who thinks our democracy is unassailable to have a look around the world.
‘Even some of the oldest, most stable democracies have come under attack from a whole range of corrosive, insidious forces. No one is immune.’
Mr Albanese will argue the NACC is a ‘crucial step’ in safeguarding Australian democracy.
‘Our democracy is precious, something we have carefully grown and nurtured from one generation to the next. One of our core responsibilities is to make it stronger, and key to that strength is transparency and accountability,’ he will say.
Mr Albanese will also tout his success at improving Australia’s relations with China after former PM Scott Morrison’s call for an inquiry into the origins of coronavirus sparked a two-year trade war.
‘It doesn’t mean we agree with China on everything. It doesn’t mean we don’t raise our concerns and our significant points of difference,’ he will say.
‘We will co-operate with China where we can, disagree where we must, and engage in Australia’s national interest.’
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong shakes hands with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, a big step in improving relations with China
Mr Albanese, in reflecting on his renewable energy target of 43 per cent by 2030, will call for Australia to become a green manufacturing powerhouse.
‘There is a great future on the horizon, and it is so exciting. Australia can be a renewable energy superpower,’ he will say.
‘Along with all that solar and wind power to generate clean, cheap, reliable electricity, we have – with our great abundance of lithium – everything we need to build the batteries we need right here.’
Finally, as a nod to the music fans he will speak to, Mr Albanese’s speech promises more arts funding and condemns nine years of Coalition cuts to the sector.
“The arts are central to our culture and it is through the arts that we build our identity as a nation and a people,’ he will say.
