Bipartisanship is essential. That’s why Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten presented a united front this week on the subject of indigenous recognition in the national constitution.

Mr Abbott and Mr Shorten welcomed indigenous leaders to Kirribilli House on Sunday evening as preparation for the 2017 referendum gathers pace.

The Prime Minister told attendees at the Kirribilli function that average Australians needed to be included in the process of working towards the referendum.

"Our task – our mission if you like – is to correct the great silence in our constitution," Mr Abbott told the reception.

"Not everyone is as passionate as we are, not everyone is as informed as we are, and our challenge over coming months is to more broadly and more deeply engage the whole of the Australian community in this task."

Mr Shorten echoed the concerns of some indigenous leaders that a minimalist constitutional change would be cosmetic and wanted the proposed wording to involve substantial reform.

"I believe Australians are big enough, smart enough and generous enough to vote for genuine, real change,” the Opposition Leader said.

The timing of the 2017 referendum is symbolic as much as it is practical.

The date has been chosen to coincide with the golden anniversary of the May 1967 referendum where more than 90 per cent of Australians voted to remove references in the constitution that were discriminatory towards Aboriginal people.

Victoria was the most supportive state in the Commonwealth with nearly 95 per cent voting in favour of the changes although all states and territories backed the reform with gusto.

Nineteen referendum questions have been put before the Australian people during the intervening five decades and only three were successful (the fourth was a plebiscite on the national anthem).

The reason why it has been so difficult to achieve change is the high benchmarks associated with achieving a successful ‘yes’ vote.

A majority of Australians have to vote in favour of the proposition nationwide as well as a majority of voters in four out of the six Australian states.

This rule has inhibited change in the past, most recently at the 1984 referendum, when just over 50 per cent of Australians voted in favour of Senate reform but an electoral imbalance meant only two states carried majorities.

Millions of dollars will be spent over the coming two years to prepare and eventually host the referendum. Our leaders have to ensure it is money well spent.