The Hon. Beverley McArthur, Member for Western Victoria, Media Release, 1 November 2025

Victoria has made history, but at what cost to democracy, equality, and social cohesion?  

Member for Western Victoria Bev McArthur has condemned the Allan Labor Government’s Statewide Treaty Bill 2025 (Vic), describing it as “a monument to division” that undermines equality before the law and the unity of all Victorians.

Speaking in Parliament, Mrs McArthur said she opposed the Bill “in principle, in theory and in practice,” warning that it would create “a fourth level of government for one group of citizens, funded by all and accountable to none.”

“I oppose the language in the Bill. I oppose its intent, the processes it creates, the bureaucracy, the expense. I disagree with the starting point of its advocates, and I do not believe for one minute it will deliver the outcomes they universally proclaim.” 

Mrs McArthur said the Government has failed to take Victorians with it on this journey:

“Most Victorians have no idea what’s actually contained in this legislation. The Government has not explained it or invited the public to understand it, and has acted as if the public sentiment demonstrated by the Voice referendum is entirely irrelevant.  This is not a shared journey but a political project delivered from above, without explanation, and without informed consent.”

The Statewide Treaty Bill 2025 establishes a new body, Gellung Warl, which will receive escalating annual payments starting at $24 million and rising to more than $70 million by the end of the decade.

Mrs McArthur said the legislation risks entrenching division and bureaucracy rather than closing the gap or empowering communities.

“This Bill creates an unelected, race-based structure, with a blank cheque for interference across government. Hundreds of millions of dollars will flow to a new body beyond ministerial control, while ordinary Victorians struggling in rural and regional areas continue to wait for practical help.”

She stressed that while she strongly supports helping those who face real disadvantage, assistance must be based on need, not race.

“We should help people because they are struggling, not because of their ancestry. This Bill risks helping the activist and professional class rather than the families living with poverty, poor health, and violence in our most vulnerable communities.”

Mrs McArthur also warned of the broader implications for democracy and equality:

“The requirement that every future Bill be accompanied by a ‘statement of treaty compatibility’ effectively compels every Member of Parliament to adopt the government’s own approved version of history, despite its contentious and divisive nature.  

“This control of history should terrify us: the echoes of totalitarianism are unnerving.

“I acknowledge the wrongs of the past and the continuing disadvantage faced by many Aboriginal Australians. But I am proud of a country that strives to help and offers opportunity to all. Where there is disadvantage we should address it at source, regardless of skin colour, ethnicity or background.

“True reconciliation must be grounded in honesty, equality and shared purpose”, she added. 

Mrs McArthur also questioned the government’s consultation process, citing a letter from Kurnai elder Aunty Pauline Mullett objecting to the misuse of her people’s language in naming the new body, Gellung Warl.

“If the government cannot even consult properly on the name of the body, what confidence can Victorians have in its wider claims of respect and consent?”

Mrs McArthur concluded by reaffirming her commitment to genuine progress and unity. 

“This Bill is not reconciliation, it is separation. It is a monument to division. As I said three years ago [on the introduction of legislation beginning the Treaty process], I cannot support something which I fundamentally do not believe in. It is wrong in principle, and it will not work in practice.”

“Victoria does not need two governments. It needs one government that governs for all.

“We do not need two sets of laws. We need one law that protects everyone equally.”