Many local councils have promised to hold citizenship ceremonies on Australia Day despite Anthony Albanese’s government removing the mandate that they be held on the holiday.
In late 2022, the federal government removed a previous rule requiring councils to hold citizenship ceremonies on Australia Day.
At the time, Albanese insisted there was “no change here” as nothing was being forced, but after that change, more than 80 councils abandoned citizenship ceremonies on January 26 last year.
In an audit of the country’s councils, Daily Mail Australia revealed on Friday that a staggering 154 councils across the country were not holding citizenship ceremonies on Australia Day.
The figure is likely to be higher, as just over a third of Australia’s 537 councils refused to reveal their position when asked by this newspaper.
However, the citizenship ceremonies have received strong support from councils in western Sydney, where there are large numbers of immigrants, and mayors are pushing to restore Australia Day celebrations.
Liverpool Mayor Ned Mannoun said a welcome to new Australians will be held over the holiday as it is a “symbolic” community event.
Mannoun came to Australia at the age of 10 after his Lebanese mother and Sierra Leone-born father moved from the United States.
In late 2022, the Albanese administration removed a previous rule requiring councils to hold citizenship ceremonies on Australia Day (Mr Albanese with newly sworn citizens after the National Australia Day Flag Raising and Citizenship Ceremony). Australia in Canberra on January 26, 2024)
He said his citizenship ceremony had “additional meaning” as it was celebrated on the country’s national holiday.
“We know what a blessing it is to live here,” Mr. Mannoun told the Daily Telegraph.
‘Australia Day unites us in a celebration of who we are, what we have, the freedoms we enjoy and the promise of a bright, peaceful future.
“For many of our citizens who have come here to escape conflict and persecution, it is also a ‘thank you Australia’ holiday.”
Blacktown Mayor also has a sizeable percentage of new immigrants, and Mayor Brad Bunting said they love celebrating their new home in Australia.
Blacktown is the largest local government area in New South Wales, with 430,000 residents speaking 188 different languages.
Mr Bunting said the Blacktown community loves celebrating “the best place to live in the world” and really values life in Australia.
“Some people come here because they want to, some people come because they have to, but everyone loves being in this country,” he said.

It comes after Opposition Leader Peter Dutton criticized Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for making Australia “something to be ashamed of”.
Its council has planned a citizenship ceremony on January 26 to welcome more than 500 new Australians, which will begin with a corroboration and end with the iconic Australian chant ‘Aussie, Aussie, Aussie – Oi, Oi, Oi’.
Fairfield Mayor Frank Carbone said Australia Day was important because it allowed those born in Australia and those who moved to the country in search of a better life to “recognise and respect the past”.
Fairfield Council has provided residents with free Australian flags ahead of Sunday and will hold Australia Day celebrations, including a community awards event.
It comes after Peter Dutton promised to reinstate Australia Day citizenship ceremonies on January 26 if he wins the next federal election.
The opposition leader criticized Albanese’s attitude towards the January 26 celebrations and accused him of allowing them to become “something to be ashamed of”.
‘Would we reinstate the requirement for councils to hold citizenship ceremonies on Australia Day? “You can bet they will in the first 100 days,” Dutton told reporters.
‘It will be a sign of pride and nationalism in our country… I am incredibly proud of Australians and who we are. I am proud of our indigenous heritage.
“I am very proud of our immigrant history and I am very proud of the fact that we are a country that must stand up, protect and defend its values.”
Australia Day is celebrated on January 26 and marks the arrival of the First Fleet into Sydney Harbor on that day in 1788, when the first governor of the British colony of New South Wales, Arthur Phillip, raised the Union Jack in Sydney Cove.
However, for many Australians, particularly First Nations and Indigenous peoples, it is regarded as “Invasion Day” or “Day of Mourning”.
Demonstrations are held in every major city each year on Australia Day, with thousands of protesters calling for the national holiday to be scrapped or moved to another date.
Many local councils across the country have canceled Australia Day celebrations, opting to hold citizenship ceremonies on January 24 or 29.