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Momentum grows to change Australia Day date

January 27, 2021

 

Last year, our People’s Voice survey found that the majority of West Aussies supported keeping Australia Day on January 26th… but that the level of support declined with each younger generation.

A year on and the world has changed a lot – so we checked out whether sentiment had shifted at all…

Turns out, it has. While last year 65% of Western Australians agreed with keeping Australia Day on January 26th, twelve months later that proportion has significantly dropped to 54%. At the other end of the scale, almost 3 in 10 (28%) are now opposed to keeping the traditional date.

Once again, it’s WA’s youngest generations leading the call to change the date. 38% of 18-39 year-olds now agree that the current date of celebration should be kept – a substantial drop from the 55% who agreed in 2020. In fact, the exact same proportion (38%) of 18–39 year-olds now disagree with keeping the date.

Although still making up the majority, the proportions of those in older age groups who agree with keeping Australia Day on January 26th also declined. For 40-59 year olds, agreement fell from 67% in 2020 to 59% this year, while disagreement increased (significantly) from 21% to 25%. For 60+ year olds, agreement dropped from 78% to 73%, with disagreement now at 16% (compared to 14% in 2020).

When we survey the community again in 2022, we’ll certainly be intrigued to see if attitudes continue to trend in the same direction. Do you think they will?

To find out more information about People’s Voice and how you can get involved, visit the website: https://painteddogresearch.com/peoplesvoice/