Aboriginal Affairs

The Hon. T.A. FRANKS (15:10): Supplementary: does the minister find it a bit rich that the opposition, who want to abolish the State Voice to Parliament, are now concerned about there being no Aboriginal voices giving advice?

The PRESIDENT: That is probably not a supplementary question, but, minister, you seem to want to answer the question.

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector) (15:10): It does strike me as a little bit odd, if not supremely hypocritical, that a political party that previously has supported a representative body, albeit partially appointed by the government, like the South Australian Aboriginal Advisory Council was, and partially elected like the whole of the First Nations Voice to Parliament is, the party that has changed their mind and now does not support that representation, seems now to be concerned about the representation of Aboriginal voices here. Not on this question, but I would caution the opposition sometimes on the way they frame and ask questions, and about the long-term view of how Aboriginal leaders will view the way they conduct themselves in this chamber.