LABOR leader Bill Shorten said indigenous people were dispossessed from their land
and he understands why they believe Australia was invaded by the British.
He has also signalled a Labor Government could back a treaty with indigenous people in addition to indigenous recognition in the constitution.
Mr Shorten last night declared Australia didn’t “handle Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people well”.
“I actually think that calling out racism in this country isn’t part of the set election script, but it’s true,” Mr Shorten said, adding that he wanted more indigenous Australians in the parliament.
The declaration came after Mr Shorten was asked by indigenous man Doug on ABC’S Q&A if he believed Australia had been invaded by the British in 1788.
“If I was an Aboriginal or indigenous person, yes, I would,’’ Mr Shorten replied on the program.
Mr Shorten declared reconciliation needed to be both practical and symbolic, reverencing changing the constitution and considering a treaty.
He also said Australia needed to move “beyond” recognition in the constitution.
“Do I think we need to move beyond just constitutional recognition to talking about what a post-constitutional recognition settlement with indigenous people looks like, yes I do.”
When pressed if this could be a treaty, Mr Shorten replied “yes.”
Pressed on whether he believed colonisation constituted an invasion, Mr Turnbull recalled his family’s convict heritage.
Mr Shorten was quizzed on the program by several people about how Labor would fund policies such as its proposal to expand the National Broadband Network.
He was also challenged by a small-business owner to support company tax relief.
Mr Shorten said a Labor Government would dump Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s plan to cut the tax rate for large companies and would further restrict negative gearing and capital gains tax concessions.
“It’s about choices. I choose to use scarce taxpayer dollars and find the money through hard decisions to help save Medicare, properly fund our schools and make sure we can back in our kids going to university,’’ he said.
“Mr Turnbull chooses to make his economic plan giving away $50 billion to large corporations.”
The Opposition has come under pressure in recent days after announcing it would slow the reduction in budget deficits over the next three years.
Mr Shorten said many of the savings Mr Turnbull was relying on were “zombie measures’’ which would never be passed by the Senate.
“We will not reduce the deficit as fast as the Government in the first three years because they’re relying on cuts which are fake and bogus,’’ he said.
At the start of the program, Mr Shorten condemned the massacre of 50 people at a gay nightclub in Florida.
“This wasn’t just an attack on our humanity, this was an attack on our right to be proud of who we are, our right to choose who we love,’’ he said
Asked about housing affordability, Mr Shorten said negative gearing should be restricted to new investment properties to make it easier for first-home buyers to compete for properties.
The Labor leader said other issues, including land release, were impacting on the affordability of housing.
He has also signalled a Labor Government could back a treaty with indigenous people in addition to indigenous recognition in the constitution.
Mr Shorten last night declared Australia didn’t “handle Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people well”.
“I actually think that calling out racism in this country isn’t part of the set election script, but it’s true,” Mr Shorten said, adding that he wanted more indigenous Australians in the parliament.
The declaration came after Mr Shorten was asked by indigenous man Doug on ABC’S Q&A if he believed Australia had been invaded by the British in 1788.
“If I was an Aboriginal or indigenous person, yes, I would,’’ Mr Shorten replied on the program.
Mr Shorten declared reconciliation needed to be both practical and symbolic, reverencing changing the constitution and considering a treaty.
He also said Australia needed to move “beyond” recognition in the constitution.
“Do I think we need to move beyond just constitutional recognition to talking about what a post-constitutional recognition settlement with indigenous people looks like, yes I do.”
When pressed if this could be a treaty, Mr Shorten replied “yes.”
Pressed on whether he believed colonisation constituted an invasion, Mr Turnbull recalled his family’s convict heritage.
Mr Shorten was quizzed on the program by several people about how Labor would fund policies such as its proposal to expand the National Broadband Network.
He was also challenged by a small-business owner to support company tax relief.
Mr Shorten said a Labor Government would dump Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s plan to cut the tax rate for large companies and would further restrict negative gearing and capital gains tax concessions.
“It’s about choices. I choose to use scarce taxpayer dollars and find the money through hard decisions to help save Medicare, properly fund our schools and make sure we can back in our kids going to university,’’ he said.
“Mr Turnbull chooses to make his economic plan giving away $50 billion to large corporations.”
The Opposition has come under pressure in recent days after announcing it would slow the reduction in budget deficits over the next three years.
Mr Shorten said many of the savings Mr Turnbull was relying on were “zombie measures’’ which would never be passed by the Senate.
“We will not reduce the deficit as fast as the Government in the first three years because they’re relying on cuts which are fake and bogus,’’ he said.
At the start of the program, Mr Shorten condemned the massacre of 50 people at a gay nightclub in Florida.
“This wasn’t just an attack on our humanity, this was an attack on our right to be proud of who we are, our right to choose who we love,’’ he said
Asked about housing affordability, Mr Shorten said negative gearing should be restricted to new investment properties to make it easier for first-home buyers to compete for properties.
The Labor leader said other issues, including land release, were impacting on the affordability of housing.
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