Jaimee Rogers:
Welcome back. New polling from the Institute of Public Affairs reveals overwhelming support for Australia’s national anthem. 77% of Australians want to retain Advance Australia Fair and 76% think it helps unite the nation. Let’s go through it all with Deputy Executive Director at the Institute of Public Affairs, Daniel Wild. Daniel, thank you for coming on tonight. For years we’ve been told the national anthem is divisive, yet this polling seems to suggest the exact opposite. What did Australians tell you?
Daniel Wild:
Well, that’s right. As you’ve just outlined, over three quarters think the anthem’s good and they want to keep it and they believe it unites us. And what this speaks to is I think a yearning of a lot of Australians to unite around our shared monuments and symbols and values. Over the last couple of years, we’ve also seen a surge in support for Australia Day, which is now at a record high, and also for our national flag, which is also at a record high. So as we’ve become a lot more divided as a country, we’ve seen that over the last couple of years, Australians are expecting not only our political leaders, but leaders in corporate world, in civil society, at schools, and elsewhere, to get behind the national anthem as a way to bring our country together.
Jaimee Rogers:
There was an interesting element within the research and it was around how people felt towards the anthem compared to Welcome to Country, with a huge majority wanting to see us seeing the Australian anthem instead of sitting through a welcome or acknowledgement to country.
Daniel Wild:
Yeah, this was a really important finding of the survey, I think the most important one. As we know, the Welcome to Country ceremonies have become ubiquitous across our country pretty much everywhere. Whether it’s a plane that lands in the city that you grew up in, whether it’s at school, whether it’s at a board meeting, whether it’s at the footy or whatever sport you go to, there’s a Welcome to Country or an acknowledgement of country that takes place. And I’ve got to say, they don’t feel very welcoming to me anymore. They’ve become very aggressive, very hostile. The idea that you need to be welcomed to your own country I think is something that’s inherently off-putting and divisive to most Australians. And so what our survey found is that over 70% of Australians said that they would rather have the anthem instead of Welcome to Country ceremonies. And I reckon this is something that our political leaders, particularly on the centre right, really should get behind, because they’ll find that the public is right with them on it.
Jaimee Rogers:
And one thing that I found interesting. So earlier this year, the Northern Territory government mandated public schools to sing the national anthem at things like assemblies and special school events. But my first reaction was, I just assumed that this was already happening. What does that tell us about the way that patriotism and national identity are viewed in education today, that it requires a government directive to sing the anthem?
Daniel Wild:
Yeah, it’s a good point. I think a lot of people felt that way as well. Actually, when we released this polling, my colleague Morgan Beak produced a research essay explaining all of this, and then he pointed out that most people were surprised as well that it wasn’t already mandatory. So firstly, good on the Northern Territory government for making this policy change. It’s very popular and it’s the right thing to do. I think what’s happened, Jamiee, is over the years, the national anthem and other symbols, songs, monuments to Australia’s history ,have been sort of diminished or demeaned as relics of the past as things that are reminders of our sort of colonial backwater. This idea that we’re a racist nation, that we’re irredeemably racist, that our institutions and non-institutions that should be supported but should be torn down. This has all creeped into every area of society, in particular in schools and other educational institutions.
So removing the national anthem and also the flag. Very rarely, sadly at a school, do you see only the national flag. You almost always see it with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags, which sadly has diluted young Australians’ understanding of our country.
Jaimee Rogers:
How do we make sure this research gets out to the broader community, Daniel? Because it’s a really great piece of work.
Daniel Wild:
Yeah. Well, there’s a couple of things. I mean, firstly, we’re distributing the work that we’ve done into schools, which is something that we’re very passionate about, is making sure that students and teachers have access to this as an educational material. The other thing I’d say is have a look at our website where it all is, ipa.org.au. And if you’re interested in this, do share it around in whatever capacity you can, because I think Australians sometimes feel lonely. They think, “Well, maybe I’m the only one who feels this or thinks this way.” But what our survey shows is very clearly, if you like our national anthem, you want to keep it, then you’re very much in the majority.
Jaimee Rogers:
Spot on. Thank you, Daniel, for your time tonight. It was great to see you.
This transcript of Daniel Wild talking on The Jaimee Rogers Show Sky News Australia from 31 May 2026 has been edited for clarity.
