Outgoing Indigenous Affairs Minister Linda Burney says she will be "careful where I move" after retiring at the next election, when she would have "a valuable contribution to make outside the Parliament".
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"I am well, I am excited, I'm happy to have made this difficult decision," Ms Burney, who has spent 21 years in politics, told reporters in Sydney.
"My entire life has always been about service [and] I don't think that will change ... There's a few rodeos left in this body, I assure you."
Asked on Thursday if the NSW government's consultation about the state's treaty process with its First Nations peoples was on her agenda, Ms Burney said: "The Minns government is actually in the process of appointing treaty commissioners."
She would not be drawn on whether the Albanese government should move urgently to establish a Makarrata Commission - as called for by the Uluru Statement from the Heart as a body to supervise a process of agreement-making and truth-telling - instead shifting to talk about other jurisdictions.
"I have travelled extensively, as you know, over the past two years and every state and territory, bar one, has either a treaty or a truth-telling or both processes underway," she said.
![Linda Burney says she has plenty more to give after retiring from politics. Picture by AAP Linda Burney says she has plenty more to give after retiring from politics. Picture by AAP](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/234480217/28ef0aca-a8ce-4b9c-b2ba-b18312eba510.jpg/r0_422_8256_5082_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
"I met with Aboriginal affairs ministers and the community. They believe we are heading in the right direction. Can I say that for me, the issue of truth-telling is not about a judicial process, it's about bringing people together and bringing people with you."
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese sought to deflect questions about the minister's future plans, saying: "She's got a job. She's the member for Barton."
Ms Burney, 67, has battled health problems in recent years, including a transient ischemic attack - also known as a "mini-stroke" - and surgery to repair a hole in her heart.
She fronted the media with Mr Albanese and Skills Minister Brendan O'Connor, who is also retiring. Both ministers are stepping down from their portfolios to allow Mr Albanese to refresh his cabinet ahead of calling an election, with the reshuffle to be announced on Sunday.
![Skills Minister Brendan O'Connor is also planning to retire from politics. Picture by Keegan Carroll Skills Minister Brendan O'Connor is also planning to retire from politics. Picture by Keegan Carroll](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/3BUUzmFAhrhLyX9rFCubPq5/5ce4b1a7-ed29-4e20-a7a6-91643d47e04e.jpg/r0_256_5000_3078_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
'Clear priorities' needed on Closing the Gap
Ms Burney addressed the failure of the Voice to Parliament referendum last year, saying that while it "didn't deliver the outcome we had hoped ... I think history will treat it kindly."
"I know in my heart, I gave all that I could to close the gap and to advance reconciliation," she said.
"I was the first Indigenous person elected to the New South Wales Parliament, the first Indigenous woman in the House of Representatives, the first Indigenous woman to be appointed by this wonderful man here to Cabinet, but I won't be the last. To me, that is progress. It's time to hand the baton on."
Ms Burney acknowledged that most targets in the national Closing the Gap Agreement are not on target, echoing Mr Albanese's description of the discrepancy between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians' wellbeing "not as a gap, but as a chasm ... in some areas".
"But it will be wrong to say that there have not been improvements in most targets," she said.
"With Closing the Gap, we need to be clear about what the priorities are."
The minister said the focus should be on the four target areas that are going backwards, which are focused on improving life expectancy while reducing suicide and incarceration rates, along with out-of-home-care representation, of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults and children.
"We also need to remember that state and territory governments are also part of this journey, along with the Coalition of Peaks."
She called for unity in the politics of Indigenous affairs, saying it was "very, very sad" that Australia did not have "a bipartisan approach to these issues and I think First Nations people and the Australian people would like to see that change".