---
title: Referendum Council (Australia)
type: governance
status: inactive
country: AU
website: https://web.archive.org/web/*/https://www.referendumcouncil.org.au
summary: A formal Australian advisory body (2016–17) tasked with consulting on constitutional
  recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples — its process produced
  the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
concepts:
- citizens-assembly
- constitutional-democracy
- democracy
location:
  latitude: -35.2809
  longitude: 149.13
  name: Canberra, Australia
  precision: city
events:
- date: '2015-12-07'
  title: Jointly appointed by PM Malcolm Turnbull and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten
  url: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Referendum_Council
  quote: The 16-member Referendum Council was jointly appointed by the prime minister,
    Malcolm Turnbull, and Leader of the Opposition, Bill Shorten, on 7 December 2015
  proof_level: high
  url_checked: '2026-08-10'
  notable: true
- date: '2017-05-26'
  title: Uluru Statement from the Heart issued at the First Nations National Constitutional
    Convention
  url: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Referendum_Council
  quote: The First Nations National Constitutional Convention met over four days from
    23 to 26 May 2017
  proof_level: high
  url_checked: '2026-08-10'
  notable: true
- date: '2017-06-30'
  title: Final Report published, incorporating the Uluru Statement
  url: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Referendum_Council
  quote: The Final Report of the Referendum Council was published on 30 June 2017,
    and sent to the Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, and the leader of the opposition,
    Bill Shorten
  proof_level: high
  url_checked: '2026-08-10'
  notable: true
---

The Referendum Council was a joint advisory body established by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten in December 2016. Co-chaired by Pat Anderson AO and Mark Leibler AC, it was tasked with consulting broadly on options for constitutional recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and reporting back with recommendations.

The Council conducted a national consultation process that included a series of First Nations regional dialogues culminating in the First Nations National Constitutional Convention at Uluru in May 2017. That convention produced the **Uluru Statement from the Heart** — a document calling for a constitutionally enshrined First Nations Voice to Parliament, a Makarrata Commission for treaty-making, and truth-telling processes. The Statement is regarded as one of the most significant governance design documents in Australian democratic history.

The Council delivered its final report in June 2017 and was subsequently wound up. The Uluru Statement's core proposal — the Voice to Parliament — was put to a national referendum in October 2023.

## Links

- Archive: [referendumcouncil.org.au (Wayback Machine)](https://web.archive.org/web/*/https://www.referendumcouncil.org.au)

## See also

- [Citizens' Assembly](../concepts/citizens-assembly.md)
- [Constitutional Democracy](../concepts/constitutional-democracy.md)
- [Democracy](../concepts/democracy.md)