Sky News Afternoon Agenda with Tom Connell

TOM CONNELL: Representation of the territories in Australia could grow at the next election. Speaking at a conference in Canberra today, the Special Minister of State, Don Farrell, said the Government would consider giving the Northern Territory more Senate seats in the next term of Parliament. Currently, of course, all six states have twelve. The territories, including here in Canberra, get just two each. The total for the upper House is 76. Joining me now is the Minister for Regional Development, Local Government and Territories, Kristy McBain. Thanks for your time. So, what's happening here? What exactly is being considered?

KRISTY MCBAIN: There is a committee that deals with electoral matters and obviously this is a matter before them. Representation of the territories is something that's been talked about now for a number of years, particularly in the ACT, where we know that there's been significant lobbying on that for some time. That will be a matter for that committee to discuss and put to the Government, and we'll see what comes of that.

CONNELL: What's your view on it?

MCBAIN: The ACT is growing substantially and when you look at the population of the ACT and Tasmania, there are some legitimate questions about representation. It’s important that we have at least two senators for the Northern Territory, and at the previous term of parliament there was a bipartisan result that made sure that representation stayed at two, instead of reducing it, which is what the potential was. It’s really important that we make sure that we don't reduce the number of Senators across our territories.

CONNELL: So clarifying, whatever decision, it would be the same amount for both territories. Is that what's being looked at here, or different territories could get different amounts?

MCBAIN: That's a matter for the committee to make their recommendations to parliament and to the Government, and we’ll what those recommendations are.

CONNELL: On a population basis, the Northern Territory population of 250,000 have two senators, so one senator for every 125,000 people. That rate actually is lower than every state except Tasmania. So, if Tasmania is the comparison site, well, everywhere should get more Senators. But isn't it a bit of a weak case on a population basis?

MCBAIN: Again, the committee will determine what they're doing and they'll make the recommendations to the Government and we'll go from there. It’s really important that we don't dilute the representation that we currently have in the parliament for the territories.

CONNELL. So, your main one would be not NT not going down as that push happened last time.

MCBAIN: Exactly right, that's important and at the last term of parliament there was a bipartisan determination that we would not reduce the number of Senators in the NT.

CONNELL: We've just had a lot of debate in question time and heard the PM talk about treaty. So, can we just clarify, because Labor has funded money for this Makarrata Commission, which effectively would be overseeing treaty, what's the actual view here? Would this kick in at a federal level if The Voice referendum gets up?

MCBAIN: It’s really important that we don't muddy the waters around The Voice debate, and at the moment we're moving towards a referendum in the last quarter of the year. That referendum is solely about a Voice to Parliament. It's about making sure that there is recognition of First Nations peoples in the constitution. It's about making sure that a Voice to Parliament cannot be changed in the future. We know that several First Nations bodies have been constituted over time and then ripped up and changed with the change of government. To make a difference on the ground in regional, rural and remote communities, we need to make sure that there is longevity in this system. I've done a lot of travel in my role as Regional Development Minister and I've spoken to a lot of First Nations communities and a lot of rural and remote communities. What they want is consistency and this is what The Voice will offer them. A continued presence to parliament and to government, over the things they know will make a difference on the ground. It's incumbent upon us to listen, and if we continue to do the same thing and expect a different result, then we will never Close the Gap. This referendum is specifically about doing things differently.

CONNELL: Yes, and on that. It has nothing to do with the Makarrata Commission. But you say muddy the water - your government has funded, put money aside for a Makarrata Commission, presumably that is at a federal level, is it? What's the point of that funding? Is it just to oversee what the states do? Or would it be for some sort of federal treaty as well?

MCBAIN: We want to make sure that we are listening to First Nations communities. The Uluru Statement from the Heart was really clear. There were three steps to their process. They wanted constitutional recognition through a Voice to Parliament, they wanted truth telling and they wanted treaty making. We haven't even got to step one yet and we need to make sure that we deal with step one first, and we do so in a manner that makes sure that we have accurate information out in our communities. That is the job at the moment of the media and of politicians, to make sure we get accurate information out.

CONNELL: When you say step one, are you saying that the treaty could only happen after step one? It has to go in that order.

MCBAIN: The Uluru Statement from the Heart makes clear that they want to do a Voice first, then proceed with the other requests in that statement.

CONNELL: So, nothing else would happen until the Voice?

MCBAIN: It's really clear that our priority is dealing.

CONNELL: I know priority, but you have got to have that pesky issue, getting the Australian people to approve it.

MCBAIN: Well, it's not a pesky issue.

CONNELL: But in the event that it doesn't pass, you've still got the option of a Makarrata Commission?

MCBAIN: That's right. We will have to go to a referendum first with the Australian people, and then we'll see what that referendum comes back with and then work out what we do next.

CONNELL: Kristy McBain, appreciate your time. Thank you.

MCBAIN: Thank you very much.