No, the Voice could not veto a future referendum seeking to remove it from the constitution

^{By Eiddwen Jeffery}

A successful Yes vote for the Voice to Parliament would amount to “a bloodless coup”, giving a “small group of elites” the power to veto any future referendum that seeks to remove the Voice from the constitution, according to social media users who oppose the Voice.

The claim has been made in multiple posts on social media, amassing just under 100 shares on Facebook and over 4,000 views on Twitter. 

The post shows an image of the Minister for Indigenous Australians, Linda Burney, overlaid with text warning audiences that the Voice would lead to “an unelected black monarchy and apartheid”.

It further claims that an enshrined Voice would have the power to stop any referendum designed to remove it from the constitution in the future.

“YOU'LL NEED ANOTHER REFERENDUM TO REVERSE IT BUT IF ONE IS PROPOSED, NO MATTER WHO IS IN GOVERNMENT, THE VOICE CAN JUST VETO IT. THAT IS HOW MUCH POWER IT GIVES,” the text states.

The comments of users engaging with the posts show some were conflicted over the accuracy of the claim, questioning the logic of the text, while others doubled down by suggesting that the Voice could “overthrow” an elected government.  

But the claim is false. The proposed Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament would be only an advisory body with no powers of veto.

The Voice referendum proposes to amend the Australian Constitution to include a new section to recognise Indigenous Australians as the First Peoples of Australia and to create a representative body called the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders Voice. 

If the amendment is enshrined in the constitution, the Voice will act as an independent advisory body that can make representations to the parliament and government on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

The Constitutional Expert Group, comprising senior legal experts who provided advice to the government on the Voice process, said in a communique published last year that the Voice would have no veto power.

“The draft provision does not in any way provide the Voice with a veto power over the functions or powers of the parliament or the executive,” the communique said.

Australia's chief legal counsel, Solicitor General Dr Stephen Donaghue KC, has stated the constitutional amendment for the Voice does “not pose any threat” to Australia’s system of representative government.

In his advice on the Voice, Dr Donaghue KC said: “... the Voice would have no power to make laws, to develop or administer policies or to decide disputes.” 

He said the Voice would operate “only as an advisory body” to parliament and government, adding that “the Voice clearly has no power of veto”.

Scientia Professor in Law George Williams, who has expertise in constitutional law, explained in an email to RMIT FactLab that “the Voice, if supported this year, could be removed via a later referendum. The Voice could not be abolished, though, by government or parliament, it would take a future constitutional change as the Voice would be entrenched in the constitution.”

The Constitutional Alteration (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice) bill to establish the referendum passed through the House of Representatives on May 31. The Explanatory Memorandum to the bill also states the proposed amendment does not give the Voice power to “prevent, delay or veto decisions of the parliament or the executive government”.

Claims that the Voice will have veto powers surfaced in the lead up debate to the referendum, with former Liberal Prime Minister Tony Abbott first raising concern the body could have “something approaching a veto” in August last year. 

Since then deputy opposition leader, Sussan Ley, has also claimed the Voice could veto public holidays such as Anzac Day.

Misleading information about the Voice referendum has been repeatedly rejected by legal experts consulted by fact checkers, including false claims that the Voice would amount to a third chamber of parlaiment (debunked by FactLab) and that every piece of legislation going through federal parliament would have to be approved by the Voice (debunked by AAP Factcheck).

The Constitutional Alteration bill is expected to be debated in the Senate in coming weeks, with the referendum due to be held between October and December 2023.