{
  "id": 6538796,
  "title": "The Coalition wants to make flag burning a crime. It’s a revival of a decades-old battle",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/10/the-coalition-wants-to-make-flag-burning-a-crime-its-a-revival-of-a",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-10T04:16:45.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Conversation AU",
    "slug": "the-conversation-au",
    "url": "https://theconversation.com/the-coalition-wants-to-make-flag-burning-a-crime-its-a-revival-of-a-decades-old-battle-291568"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Coalition has announced plans to criminalise flag burning and desecration of war memorials, a policy aimed at \"protecting and defending our national day, our national flag and our war memorials\". This move is reminiscent of a long-standing battle between the right-wing factions in Australian politics. The issue has been a prominent theme for populist right-wing groups, such as Advance and the Murdoch media, and is also a key focus for the right-wing digital campaigning organisation Advance. Former chief of staff to Prime Minister Tony Abbott, Peta Credlin, warns that failure to address these issues could result in a significant shift in Australian politics. This resurgence of flag and Australia Day politics signals that conservative politicians are keen to appeal to patriotism and compete with One Nation on issues of national pride.",
  "summary": "Flag politics and Australia Day debates are shaping up to be key themes in conservative political discourse in the months ahead.",
  "key_points": [
    "Coalition plans to criminalise flag burning and desecration of war memorials.",
    "Revival of decades-old battle between right-wing factions in Australian politics.",
    "Former PM Tony Abbott's chief of staff warns of significant shift in politics."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}