Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner will welcome 605 new citizens from 81 countries in a special Australia Day citizenship ceremony at Brisbane City Hall.
Cr Schrinner said the ceremony is a wonderful way to meet and greet our newest citizens and hear their incredible stories.
“Brisbane is the fastest growing capital city in the country with our strong economy, great outdoor lifestyle and clean and green reputation the envy of many other places around the world,” he said.
“I’m not surprised so many people from around the globe are choosing Brisbane to live because Brisbane just keeps getting better.
“Brisbane always has one of the nation’s biggest Australia Day citizenship ceremony and it’s always fascinating to get the perspectives, stories and experiences from our newest citizens.”
The top five nationalities attending Brisbane’s citizenship ceremony today are from India (97), United Kingdom (44), China (39), Pakistan (26) and South Africa (23).
“Each and every one of these new residents help make Brisbane bettering, ensuring our community becomes more multicultural while promoting harmony and inclusiveness,” Cr Schrinner said.
Council has returned to hosting regular citizenship events after ceremonies were postponed during the CONVID-19 pandemic. More than 11,000 new citizens were welcomed at the end of 2022.
Cr Schrinner said this year, the newest citizens will also be able to hear some of the stories from the winners of the Lord Mayor’s Australia Day Awards.
“George Rowlison, our Citizen of the Year, is an inspiration to us all with the work he has done running and assisting the Everton Park Scouts Group for several decades,” he said.
“Jan Kennedy is our Senior Citizen of the Year and has 20 years of continuous community volunteering to several groups.
“Our Young Citizens of the Year, Tom Price and Chantelle Giles, prove that the passion of youth is a fantastic way of helping under privileged people.
“I feel very honoured to have the opportunity to be surrounded by such inspirational people who call Brisbane home.”
The Australia Day Citizenship Ceremony will be held between 9:30 and 10:30am at Brisbane City Hall this Australia Day, January 26.
For more information visit www.brisbane.qld.gov.au, or call Council on 3403 8888.
