The senior advisory group for an Indigenous voice held its final meeting this week ahead of delivering an interim report to the government.
The advisory group, led by co-chairs Professor Marcia Langton AO and Professor Tom Calma AO was established last year to help develop options for an Indigenous voice.
Details of the group’s final meeting are not known, but in an op-ed in the Australian newspaper, the co-chairs said the proposals will be considered by federal cabinet next month.
"The report will include draft proposals developed and endorsed by the National and Local & Regional Co-design Groups, along with our advice on how to undertake consultation and engagement across the country.
"We have contested ideas and challenged ourselves to consider what might work best now, and into the future, to ensure the voices of all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples across the nation are heard by politicians," the wrote.
The co-chairs said a national voice will complement the work of existing organisations and bodies such as Aboriginal Land Councils.
"Our proposals will provide a framework to support what is already happening in many areas around the country, although disjointed and lacking a national body, where existing Indigenous advisory bodies and councils operate.
"It will enhance shared decision-making and ensure we are heard at all levels, as no one level of government has sole responsibility for delivery of the programs, tools or funding that are needed to improve the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians," they wrote.
If the proposal is approved by cabinet, the framework for the voice will be developed into a discussion paper and open for public comment.
