In short:
Victoria has released a joint statement confirming the Statewide Treaty is almost finalised. But critics say it echoes The Voice and now question the $382M spent so far.
Critics Say It Mirrors The Voice
A joint statement released today confirms Victoria is nearing completion of its first statewide Treaty agreement, with the Allan Labor Government and the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria entering the final drafting stages.
The government has announced it will introduce a Statewide Treaty Bill to Parliament once negotiations are finalised. Key topics in the current phase include the creation of a First Peoples Institute, renaming of geographic features using traditional names, government training in Treaty processes, and frameworks for sharing and trading water entitlements between First Peoples.
The Victorian Government describes the Treaty as a way to “acknowledge the past and make real, practical change to achieve better outcomes for First Peoples in Victoria.”
However, the release has renewed public debate — particularly around its similarities to the national Voice to Parliament proposal that was decisively rejected by Australians in the 2023 referendum.
Adding to the controversy, it has been revealed that a total of $382 million has already been spent over the past decade on Treaty-related negotiations. The majority of the spending went toward establishing the Treaty Authority — promoted by government as an “independent umpire” to oversee negotiations.
Critics say the process reflects a growing bureaucracy that does little to address actual disadvantage.
Among those critical is Country Liberal Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, who warned in 2022 that simply having Indigenous heritage should not be equated with disadvantage.
“We have a growing successful Indigenous middle class who’ve been able to take advantage of what our nation has to offer in way of education, access to services and employment,” she said.
“These individuals have not made these accomplishments with a Voice to parliament or a Treaty. The answers already exist and have been tried and tested.”
Price argues that the real “gap” is not between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, but between marginalised Australians and those who are already thriving. She said the most entrenched disadvantage lies in remote communities where English is not the first language, access to education is poor, and job opportunities are scarce.
“We need to focus our efforts on improving the lives of marginalised Australians no matter their background instead of making this about race,” she said.
“All the successful individuals claiming a Voice to parliament and Treaty are going to provide these opportunities for our marginalised are completely disregarding the needs of our marginalised and seek to create opportunity to further their own success.”
“I cannot support the continuation of leaving behind the marginalised in order to further empower bureaucracy.”
While the Productivity Commission recently praised Victoria’s Treaty process as a “leading example” of shared decision-making, today’s announcement has only fuelled questions about whether this is the model Australians voted against.
