Australia’s major parties have lost ‘courage’ on Indigenous affairs, Mick Gooda says

Calls for a referendum on an Indigenous voice to parliament were key issues during the last election but there has been limited detail so far this time around. Photograph: Esther Linder/AAP

A former Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social justice commissioner has urged the major parties to pursue a more ambitious Indigenous affairs agenda, accusing leaders of losing the “courage” to pursue meaningful change after the defeat of the voice referendum.

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, and the federal opposition leader, Peter Dutton, are zipping across the country in an attempt to secure the hearts and minds of voters, with cost-of-living relief high on the agenda for both parties.