More Voice defections not ruled out by Liberal MPs

It comes as another former Liberal MP announces support for the Voice. Trent Zimmerman told the ABC he would have preferred the party support the Voice but "short of that" allow all of its members a free vote.

His comments come a day after former Indigenous minister Ken Wyatt told reporters he hoped more Liberal MPs would come to back the Voice and that he believed Opposition Leader Peter Dutton would end up allowing a conscience vote.

Currently, frontbenchers are expected to back the party position and oppose the Voice while backbenchers are allowed to hold their own position.

The Liberals' stance led to former opposition spokesman for Indigenous Australians Julian Leeser resigning from the frontbench so he could campaign for the Voice, and Mr Wyatt quitting the party.

South Australian MP Rowan Ramsey told The Canberra Times there could potentially be "a couple" of Liberal members who would come out in support of the Voice but there was a "strong view" in the party room that an Indigenous Voice to Parliament shouldn't be enshrined in the constitution.

"We are, I think, as one in that we are in favour of recognition of Indigenous people in the constitution but that the Voice, which actually submits a mechanism in place forever, is a step too far and fundamentally changes the constitution," he said.

Victorian MP Aaron Violi said he has not formed his position and does not expect to do so until after a parliamentary inquiry into the Voice referendum is undertaken and further community consultations are held in his electorate.

"I've got some genuine and serious concerns around the model as it is at the moment, particularly the Voice to the executive and the potential legal implications," he said.

"I'm also very, very mindful of engaging with my community in Casey. We've got a strong Indigenous community and I've got a concern with a national Voice around how their voice will be heard."

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Liberal National MP Andrew Wallace echoed Mr Ramsey's comments, stating that while it was possible someone else would come out in support of the Voice he wasn't aware of any more MPs who held that view and that "the vast majority of those in the party room supported the Liberal party's position".

Mr Wallace said he respected Mr Leeser's decision but believed the former frontbencher was "misguided about the consequences that would flow from enshrining the Voice into the constitution".

South Australian MP James Stevens said he didn't anticipate more frontbenchers would follow Mr Leeser "but they obviously know what they need to do if they're on the frontbench and wish to take a different position to the party room on this".

Mr Leeser's resignation has left an opening for a new Indigenous spokesperson, with Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price believed to be a front-runner for the job.

Mr Dutton, who has yet to decide on the new appointment, stood next to Senator Price on day two of his visit to Alice Springs, during which he reiterated calls for urgent action on "law and order", stating that the Voice, if it gets up, is more than a year away.

A parliamentary joint committee will hold a public inquiry into the Voice referendum on Friday, with witnesses including Uluru dialogue co-chair Professor Megan Davis and Voice co-designer Tom Calma.

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