Mitcham Council to move Australia Day awards and celebrations away from January 26

A suburban council says it will save money and avoid distressing First Nations people by changing the day of its Australia Day awards, but the community won’t get a say.

Mitcham Council will change the day of its Australia Day awards and citizenship ceremonies for the next 15 years to save money and avoid distress to First Nations people.

Cr Joanna Wells successfully asked the council at its July 9 meeting to host the celebrations on the Thursday closest to January 26 until 2040, without consulting the community.

Some councillors had raised fears if there was consultation on the matter extreme views regarding Australia Day would be shared by a “particular cohort”.

“For those in the community who are sensitive about holding celebrations such as this on Australia Day, it (the motion) removes the need to have this conversation on an annual basis,” Cr Wells said.

“Of course, it’s not about changing the date, it’s about meeting those community sensitivities, taking them on board and holding the citizenship ceremony that isn’t on Australia Day.”

Should Australia Day be on a Thursday, the event would be held on a Wednesday that year.

In 2022, the federal government determined Australian Day awards and citizenship ceremonies could be held by councils on Australia Day, or within three days either side of January 26.

As a result, the council moved its ceremony to January 25 this year, which cost $15,500 – compared to an average cost of $32,200 when held on the public holiday.

However, the motion divided councillors with one saying it “went a step too far” given it was a decision that would affect future councils and the community was not consulted.

Mitcham Council will move Australia Day awards and ceremonies away from January 26. Picture: iStock

“No one has asked the ratepayers of Mitcham what their degree of sensitivity to the date is,” Cr Rodd Moss told the meeting.

“I’ve had four phone calls and three emails today asking ‘why are you moving away from the 26th’. Not engaging the community ... and proposing this for 2040 ... in my humble opinion, is a step too far.”

Cr Karen Hockley said she was a “big fan” of consultation but feared if it were to occur on this topic, “we won’t have genuine responses from people on the street”.

“We’ll hear responses from a particular cohort who have been radicalised in a particular way,” Cr Hockley said.

Mayor Heather Holmes-Ross agreed and said after the referendum last year “I would hate for us to go out and consult on Australia Day”.

Mitcham Mayor Heather Holmes-Ross. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

Mitcham Councillor Karen Hockley.

“We are elected to lead and our leaders’ job is to unite and I think to go to consultation on this particular topic would be really divisive,” Dr Holmes-Ross said.

Cr Wells said she was “horrified” at the possibility of consultation as the council had a “responsibility to every single person in our council area to look after them”.

“I firmly believe to go out to consultation on this would be reprehensible and would not be fulfilling that duty,” she said. “I actually think it would be irresponsible.”

The council passed the motion 8:2 with a division called.

Councillors Jane Bange, Kamal Bhagat, Hockley, Darren Kruse, Tom Morrison, Yvonne Todd, Aidan Greenshields and Wells were in favour.

Councillors Ross and Corin McCarthy were against, while councillors Pia George and Andrew Tilley were an apology to the meeting.

Meanwhile, Unley Council this week asked its ratepayers whether its Australia Day citizenship ceremony and awards should be held on January 26 in 2025. It held its 2024 celebrations on January 25.

Originally published as Mitcham Council to move Australia Day awards and celebrations away from January 26