Australian politics Australia news live: Labor say Coalition plan to criminalise flag burning has ‘element of desperation, trying to chase One Nation’ Follow today’s news live Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast LIVE Updated 6m ago Tory Shepherd Sun 6 Sep 2026 04.38 BSTFirst published on Sat 5 Sep 2026 23.49 BST Share Key events 1h ago Qantas’ New Zealand flight ‘engine issue’ 2h ago Plan to criminalise burning of Australian flag about ‘national pride’, says Taylor 2h ago Nepal situation becoming more difficult with time: assistant foreign minister 3h ago Excise cut plan won’t see smoking rates rise: Taylor 4h ago Hefty fines for social media companies under government plan 4h ago Opposition will have a ‘humdinger’ immigration policy, Duniam says 5h ago Excise cut modelling ‘saw a real change’, Duniam says 5h ago Welcome 5h ago Taylor proposes laws against flag burning, and for 26 January 5h ago Fire ban as Sydney swelters Assistant foreign minister Matt Thistlethwaite.
Photograph: Brendon Thorne/AAP From 2h ago As touched on earlier, the opposition wants new laws to make it a criminal offence to burn the Australian flag or damage war memorials.
As the Coalition fights to regain standing against Pauline Hanson and One Nation, the opposition’s legislation would create a federal criminal offence for serious public desecration of the Australian flag, where a person is reckless or where their actions would incite hatred or violence, threaten public order or cause a public disturbance.
It would also create a federal criminal offence for deliberately damaging, defacing, desecrating or destroying war memorials and other significant memorials commemorating Australia’s history.
The opposition leader, Angus Taylor, says the plan is about “standing up for the national pride that we should all feel for our great country.” The assistant foreign minister, Matt Thistlethwaite, says the plan is about politics: I think that there’s a bit of an element of desperation there, trying to chase One Nation.
It’s been tried on several occasions over many, many years.
The parliament has generally always rejected it because of the notion of upholding freedom of speech for Australians and that freedom of political expression.
Labor’s Matt Thistlethwaite.
Photograph: (a)manda Parkinson/AAP Key events 1h ago Qantas’ New Zealand flight ‘engine issue’ 2h ago Plan to criminalise burning of Australian flag about ‘national pride’, says Taylor 2h ago Nepal situation becoming more difficult with time: assistant foreign minister 3h ago Excise cut plan won’t see smoking rates rise: Taylor 4h ago Hefty fines for social media companies under government plan 4h ago Opposition will have a ‘humdinger’ immigration policy, Duniam says 5h ago Excise cut modelling ‘saw a real change’, Duniam says 5h ago Welcome 5h ago Taylor proposes laws against flag burning, and for 26 January 5h ago Fire ban as Sydney swelters Flag plan not about One Nation, opposition says The Coalition’s plan to criminalise flag burning and the defacing of historical monuments, and to enshrine 26 January in law as Australia Day, is not about trying to out-Pauline Pauline, leader Angus Taylor says: It’s time to stand up for Australia, our heritage, our history.
