TRANSCRIPT – ABC GOLD COAST RADIO

Angie Bell MP
Shadow Minister for Early Childhood Education
Shadow Minister for Youth
Federal Member for Moncrieff

TRANSCRIPT
ABC RADIO GOLD COAST

18 April 2023

Subjects: Karen Andrews, The Voice

 E&OE………………………………………….

 JULIE CLIFT:

Angie Bell, hello.

ANGIE BELL MP:

 Hi, how are you going. Thanks for having me on today.

JULIE CLIFT:

What is your reaction to Karen Andrews announcement?

ANGIE BELL MP:

 Well look I’ve known Karen for six or seven years now in the party and of course worked with her mainly on the backbench in the last term of parliament, so I’ve worked with her over the last three or four years.

Of course, Karen is an excellent local representative who cares passionately, as we’ve heard, and deeply about her electorate so from my point of view, I’d just like to thank her for her service to the community here on the Gold Coast, the LNP and indeed of course to the country. She did great work as the Industry Minister throughout COVID, with the modern manufacturing strategy, as Home Affairs Minister, but also for girls in STEM.

She also participated locally in the Reimagine 1.0 and Reimagine 2.0 forums that I delivered here on the central Gold Coast in the last term. I wish her well and I wish her family who are very lovely, very well as well.

JULIE CLIFT:

Karen Andrews has said this decision was not based on the party’s position, which is being opposed to The Voice to Parliament. She says she supports the party’s position about that.

 KAREN ANDREWS MP [EXCERPT]:

So, I don’t support the words that are currently being proposed by Mr. Albanese, I’m open, as my party is, to working with the government on a proper set of words, Constitutional recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. But I think that the words that are proposed are not words that I can support, not words that I can advocate for, but I’ve always made it clear that in matters such as these, I want my community to be informed of the pros and the cons of what is being put forward.

So, over the next few months, I will work towards making sure that the people on the Southern Gold Coast have the opportunity to understand the question that is being put, as many implications as I can possibly put forward to them. But I want to do that in a very neutral way. This is a decision for each and every Australian, and I want to make sure that people are informed and that they make a decision that they are comfortable with.

I won’t certainly be out there wearing a shirt that says, ‘vote no’. When people speak to me, I will go through what my concerns are, but I want to do that in a very neutral way so that people are in a position that they can make their own mind up.

JULIE CLIFT:

Karen Andrews there outlining how she will go about The Voice to Parliament. We asked you for an interview Angie Bell after the Dutton decision regarding The Voice to Parliament and heard nothing. Did you need to be convinced that this was the right decision?

ANGIE BELL MP:

 I think at that time, Julie, I had very many meetings in my schedule and just simply couldn’t fit in talking to the ABC on the Gold Coast on that particular day. I certainly would just like to outline from the get go that I think there hasn’t been enough respect in this debate to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

I’ve got about 3,500 in the electorate of Moncrieff and for those who may be listening and others around the country, I think that this particular area should be conducted with the greatest of respect that it deserves and I don’t believe that it has been so far with the political inference somehow that those who choose to vote no, in the Liberal Party or across the electorate, are somehow racist or bigots for having their view.

I completely reject that 100% and I think that has been an inference from perhaps the other side of politics to say that’s the case and it is simply not the case. We want better outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. Without a doubt, this country needs to do better in that area.

JULIE CLIFT:

You fully support the decision of the Opposition to vote no on the current proposed wording. Why is that?

ANGIE BELL MP:

Well, this is not actually about Constitutional recognition, or about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people having their say because we all agree that as a nation we have to do better and we all agree across the Liberal Party that Constitutional recognition is indeed appropriate.

I would agree with Karen’s view on this, that it is about the words, their meaning and their impact in terms of what the Prime Minister is proposing. It’s about the outcomes for those peoples of our nation but it’s also about the interpretation by the High Court and the unintended consequences of those words that have been put forward by the Prime Minister.

Now, let’s be clear, I think it’s really important that the Prime Minister should not be dividing the country this way, the way that he is because ultimately, it’s up to each and every Australian to have their say, as it should be to change the very important document that is the constitution.

So the Liberal Party’s opposition to this is about the words and it’s about the unintended consequences that haven’t been properly tested because as Australians know, once you change the Constitution it simply cannot be changed back without another referendum at great cost to the Australian government and of course, the Australian taxpayer at the end of the day.

So I think we’ve got to be reasonable about this. We’ve got to be calm, measured, and we have to be respectful particularly to those in our population across the country who are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders.

JULIE CLIFT:

Before the Liberal Party stepped forward with the announcement of where they would stand on the Voice to Parliament. Did you push for a conscience vote?

ANGIE BELL MP:

 Well, we had a number of meetings. I met with Julian Leeser a number of times as well. Ultimately, this was something that was discussed in party room and it was also discussed, obviously in Shadow Cabinet – I’m in the outer ministry so I wasn’t in the Shadow Cabinet discussions but this is something that the party has arrived at through our party room process, which is where everybody can have their say, and everybody has had their say on this.

There are very many Australians across our country who don’t understand what this means, who don’t understand what the Prime Minister is putting to the Australian people, who don’t perhaps understand what the unintended consequences are, which I don’t really believe the Prime Minister understands. He certainly can’t answer questions around those doubts that Australians have.

JULIE CLIFT:

It’s 18 minutes past four on ABC Gold Coast. I’m Julie Clift, I’m with Angie Bell, the Member for Moncrieff speaking to her about her party’s opposition to the Voice to Parliament. Could changes be made that would sway you to support the Voice?

ANGIE BELL MP:

Well, this is the what’s being undertaken at the moment with the committee process looking into the words in the Voice. Now the Prime Minister has changed the wording three times already so we’ll see if he comes to the table to include the Opposition Coalition in what the words might look like to come to a bipartisan position.

At this stage, I’m not sure that he will do that, that will be up to him. I agree with Julian Leeser’s position when he said that the Prime Minister should be engaging with Coalition voters and the Prime Minister should be engaging with the Coalition on the details of the Voice.

 JULIE CLIFT:

He obviously stepped aside as you mentioned earlier. Did you consider standing aside from Shadow Cabinet, Angie Bell?

ANGIE BELL MP:

 Well, I think that when you take a decision to represent your community you should do so. I have promised my community that I’ll put their views before my own and when I speak with those across my community, there are wide and varied opinions on the Voice. I’ve done a survey across the electorate and seen that the majority of people who sent that survey back to my office have reservations about the Voice.

JULIE CLIFT:

Earlier we heard from Karen Andrews saying that she has been and will continue to speak to people in her electorate. So, you’re saying you’re out there speaking to people and they’ve got reservations? Is that what I’m hearing, Angie Bell?

ANGIE BELL MP:

Well, obviously there are people who want to vote yes. There are other people who want to vote no. At the end of the day, it’s up to Australians to decide. We all get one individual vote for the referendum.

JULIE CLIFT:

Who should replace your Gold Coast colleague Karen Andrews?

ANGIE BELL MP:

 Well, that’s a great question but it’s certainly a question that lands fairly and squarely in the Liberal National Party membership of the McPherson Federal Divisional Council and in due course there will be a preselection called and party members will be able to nominate for that preselection and they will vote on who will replace the member for McPherson, Karen Andrews.

JULIE CLIFT:

Given it’s fair to say there’s been an issue amongst the Liberal Party in terms of female representation. Should it be another woman replacing Karen Andrews?

ANGIE BELL MP:

Well, as I said, that’s up to the FDC. Of course, we want to see more women in politics that is a no brainer on the Liberal side. We want to see more women, we need to see more women, but that is not a decision or something that I will comment on because it does not fall within my remit. It falls to every preselector in the McPherson Federal Divisional Council.

 JULIE CLIFT:

Is Peter Dutton, a good Opposition Leader, Angie Bell.

ANGIE BELL MP:

 Oh, look, I think Peter Dutton, people on the far left particularly, like to hate Peter Dutton. We’ve seen members of the Labor Party be very disrespectful to a man who is a good man with a good heart and who is actually a terrific bloke. Australians don’t get to see that side…interrupted

JULIE CLIFT:

Why don’t they get to see that? I mean, isn’t a part of what he needs to do?

ANGIE BELL MP:

Well, I think we have seen that from time to time but his history in the party in the Parliament, in the Government in which he served was very difficult portfolios. When you look at defence, home affairs, immigration, these are portfolios where you need to be a tough Minister. You need to take a tough stance and he did an exceptional job in all of those portfolios and now he’s the Opposition Leader.

Now we have seen his more tender side when he speaks about domestic violence, when he speaks about women and children in Alice Springs. You do see that more tender, soft side of Peter Dutton. He cares deeply about Australians he cares deeply about our country and to be perfectly honest, I’ve known him for a decade and he’s a top bloke.

JULIE CLIFT:

 Angie Bell. Appreciate you joining me this afternoon on ABC Gold Coast. Thanks for your time.

ANGIE BELL MP:

Thanks so much.

JULIE CLIFT:

It’s Angie Bell. She is the Member for Moncrieff.

[ends]