Australians have a more negative attitude towards major faith groups and immigration levels, but a new report says social cohesion has remained stable over the past 12 months, despite multiple areas of strain. Report author Dr James O’Donnell from the Australian National University said social cohesion had been declining up to 2023, particularly with the emergence of cost of living pressures. The report also signalled less positive attitudes towards religion, across all major faith groups. The proportion who felt at least ‘somewhat positive’ towards Christians, for example, fell from 42 per cent in 2023 to 37 per cent in 2024. One-third of Australians now report they have a somewhat or very negative attitude towards Muslims, up 7 points from 2023, and negative attitudes towards Jewish people have increased from 9 per cent to 13 per cent in the past year.
