A new poll on Australia’s attitudes towards Welcome to Country ceremonies has added weight to calls for the practice to be scaled back, with a large majority of Australians now viewing it as “divisive”.

The survey of 1,001 people conducted on behalf of the Institute of Public Affairs found that 60 per cent of Australians either agree or strongly agree that Welcome to Country ceremonies are divisive, with only 12 per cent disagreeing.

Public division over the inclusion of Welcome to Country ceremonies as part of Anzac Day services erupted on Saturday, with boos heard at services in multiple capital cities.

The Anzac Day heckling has been condemned by political leaders on both sides of the aisle, but have also prompted calls for an end to the practice, with RSL Australia announcing they would review the guidance they provide to branches.

The survey, conducted by market research firm Dynata, found 49 per cent of Australians agreed with the statement that Welcome to Country ceremonies should no longer be performed on Anzac Day – an increase of three percentage points since June 2025.

Only 31 per cent disagreed with the statement, while 21 per cent said they neither agreed nor disagreed.

Opposition to holding Welcome to Country ceremonies at sporting events was even stronger, with 60 per cent backing an end to the practice.

Twenty-eight per cent agreed and 32 per cent strongly agreed that the ceremonies should no longer be performed at sporting matches.

This was compared to 28 per cent who disagreed and just 12 per cent who strongly disagreed.

IPA deputy executive director Daniel Wild said the poll showed more and more Australians wanted Anzac Day ceremonies to focus exclusively on the sacrifices of our Diggers.

“Welcome to Country ceremonies are anything but welcoming. They have become hostile, aggressive, and a form of moral hectoring designed to make Australians feel bad about their nation and history,” Mr Wild said.

“It is bad enough that welcome or acknowledgement of country ceremonies have become pervasive in public and corporate life. But when this overreach impacts on our most sacred of days, enough is enough.”

Mr Wild said Australians were increasingly unwilling to “toe the line”, with more and more making their displeasure known.

“It should come as no surprise that Australians are not willing to remain silent, especially when it comes to a divisive practice which only serves to move the focus from the sacrifices of those who’ve laid down their lives to defend the Australian way of life,” he said.

The Dynata poll found large gender disparities across all three questions of the poll, with men opposing the Welcome to Country ceremonies by between 13 and 11 percentage points more than women.

Opposition to the practice also tended to increase with age, with 18 to 24 year olds consistently being the most supportive of Welcome to Country ceremonies.

However the age group most opposed to the ceremonies being part of Anzac Day were 25 to 34 year olds, with 53 per cent backing an end to the practice.