‘It’s disappointing’: Dutton demands Ray Martin apologise to ‘millions of Australians’ after speech attacking No voters

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton says veteran journalist Ray Martin “owes millions of Australians an apology” after his scathing remarks attacking No voters at a Voice to Parliament rally.

Martin gave a fiery keynote speech at a Yes campaign launch in Sydney’s inner west last Thursday, in which he called No Voters “dinosaurs and d***heads”. 

The television personality took aim at the catch phrase “if you don’t know, vote No”, rebuffing suggestions there needs to be more detail about the proposed constitutional change.

“If you don’t know, find out what you don’t know,” Martin told the crowd at the Factory Theatre in Marrickville.

“What that slogan is saying is if you’re a dinosaur or a d***head who can’t be bothered reading then vote No.”

Martin’s speech was met with praise from Prime Minister Anthony Albanese who described the address as “very powerful”. 

“Last night in Marrickville at the Factory Theatre we had the inner west Yes campaign launch with the great Ray Martin,” Mr Albanese told ABC radio last Friday. 

“It was great to be interviewed on stage, myself and Rachel Perkins, by Ray Martin, who gave a very powerful speech.”

However, the Opposition Leader demanded Martin apologise for his comments during an interview with 6PR radio on Thursday.

“I think obviously they’re disappointing I think Ray owes millions of Australians an apology because I don’t think it reflects the reality of people’s views on the ground,” he told Perth Live host Oliver Peterson. 

Mr Dutton also hit out at Mr Albanese for not condemning the television presenter’s comments.

“Interestingly enough the Prime Minister was at this gathering as I understand it with Ray Martin and he never called Ray Martin out, he never refuted the suggestions by Mr Martin that Australians are… the description that he provided,” he said. 

“I think it’s disappointing and I think for somebody (Ray Martin) who has relied on millions of Australians to support his work in media and television over a long period of time, to be treated like that… I think a lot of Australians would be pretty disappointed.”

Martin strongly defended his comments to 6PR Breakfast radio on Thursday following Mr Dutton’s interview.  

He clarified the context of which he used the words “dinosaurs and d***heads”, explaining he was not referring to all No voters but rather those people who intended to do so “through ignorance”.

“I was talking about the slogan that says, ‘If you don’t know, vote No’. Now, that’s one of the stupidest slogans I’ve ever seen in my life,” he told hosts Millsy and Karl.

“It’s also an endorsement of ignorance. It would seem to me if you don’t know you read something so you can find out what you don’t know, you don’t vote through ignorance. 

“And that was the point I said. The people who vote on the basis (of) ‘I don’t know therefore I’ll say No’, are either dinosaurs or d***heads.”

Martin was asked if he would use the same labels for people who choose to vote No after educating themselves about the referendum.

“Of course they’re not. I never said that and I wouldn’t say that. That’s the right everyone has,” he said. 

During this address last week, Martin argued the finer details about the Voice were not important at this point in time as they would ultimately change based on the needs of Indigenous communities. 

“At this stage of the game, the details simply don’t matter. They never did matter. Honestly, they’re irrelevant,” he said. 

“Over the next 10 or 20 or 30 years, no matter who’s in government, the details will change inevitably, as will the members of the Voice delegation from around Australia according to the needs and the priorities and the policies that are meant to close that bloody gap.

“You can’t write all that in the Constitution in 2023.”

Australians have already started heading to the polls to cast their votes ahead of the referendum on October 14, as early voting started this week.