By Maeve Bannister in Canberra

THE prime minister is confident Australians will rise to the occasion and support an Indigenous voice referendum, but the opposition leader warns the nation isn’t ready for a vote.

After two weeks of parliamentary debate about the proposal, resulting in the passage of legislation to enable a referendum, advocates want politicians to step aside to let the campaigns have conversations with Australians.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the discussion was too important for the politicisation that had been seen in parliament.

He urged people to be part of a historic opportunity to make a difference to the lives of Indigenous Australians.

“I sincerely hope that Australians rise to the occasion,” he told reporters in Canberra.

The prime minister paid tribute to Liberal MPs Julian Leeser and Bridget Archer along with business groups, faith communities and state and territory leaders who had already confirmed their support for the voice.

His commitment to hold a referendum in the last quarter of the year would hold firm, regardless of polling or community sentiment.

“Leadership is not about just doing the easy things, it is about doing things that are hard (and) changing our constitution is hard,” he said.

“There is no certainty but it requires leadership – and if not now, when? And if not under my prime ministership, under whose?”

But Opposition Leader Peter Dutton maintains Australians are not ready to vote for the voice being proposed.

He warned unanswered questions about the detail of the advisory body jeopardised the success of the referendum.

“I think the prime minister has made a catastrophic mistake here in starving detail from the Australian public,” he told reporters.

“His decision to not provide that detail means that it’s going to be lost.”

Mr Dutton defended the questions asked by the opposition during the most recent sitting week.

“There are millions of Australians who just want to know what it is they’re being asked to vote for,” he said.

“All of us want a better outcome for Indigenous Australians, particularly in regional and remote areas, but at the moment the prime minister is taking our country down a divisive path.”

Mr Albanese said if a referendum was successful, the parliament would decide the functions, procedures and composition of the voice.

“I would seek to get as much consensus as possible around that,” he said.

The prime minister is working with advisers on setting a date for the referendum, but there has been speculation that October 14 is the government’s preferred date.

“When you have a referendum and it is defeated, I can’t think of one that comes around a year later,” Mr Albanese said.

“This is a historic opportunity to make a difference (and) to show respect for Indigenous Australians.”