Australia Day Bill 2025

# Australia Day Bill 2025 – Plain English Summary ## What it does This bill officially declares 26 January as Australia's national day, called Australia Day. It also sets up a process where Australians could vote to change the date in the future if they wanted to. ## Why it matters The bill locks in Australia Day as a formal national symbol in law. This matters because the date 26 January is controversial for many—it marks the arrival of the First Fleet at Port Jackson, which began the colonisation that devastated Indigenous Australians. Right now there's ongoing debate about whether we should celebrate on a different date, and this bill creates a legal pathway for that debate to be settled by a national vote. ## Key details - **How to change the date**: Any new Australia Day date would need to be voted on by all eligible voters across every state and territory. A majority would have to support the change for it to happen. - **Parliament decides the details**: The actual voting system, how options are presented to voters, and what counts as a majority will be decided by Parliament later—it's not all spelled out in this bill. - **It starts immediately**: The bill comes into effect as soon as it receives Royal Assent (the Governor-General's approval).