The overwhelming defeat of the proposal to enshrine an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament in the Australian constitution should not be seen as a rejection of First Nations peoples.
It has been a difficult period locally and nationally; the campaign was unnecessarily divisive due to the refusal of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to strive for a bipartisan approach.
The recognition and advancement of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities remains a shared goal.
Just as I did before the referendum, I will continue to work with Indigenous communities in Nicholls to achieve better outcomes and economic empowerment.
The cause of recognition is right and just, but the wording of the constitutional amendment was an overreach.
Our representative democracy is based on the key principle of equality and Australians have rejected a constitutionally enshrined instrument of government based on race.
I continue to support promoting legislated positive discrimination where it assists Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in gaining opportunities in education, careers and economic participation.
This debate has been very difficult, and not always respectful of the premise that decent people from diverse backgrounds and races who want to see reconciliation can have different views on how to achieve it.
Necessarily, given the tone of some of the national debate, there will be a period of reflection; wounds must be healed, and as Australians, we must forge a new path based on mutual respect and shared ambition.
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