Neil Mitchell says the debate about celebrating Australia Day on January 26 is drawing attention away from the “real problem” facing Aboriginal communities.

“Australia Day is not an urgent national issue … What’s happening in Alice Springs is urgent, it is tragic, it is a crisis,” the 3AW Mornings host said.

“All the money, all the talk about the Voice, all the debate about Australia Day and we’ve got five-year-old kids rampaging the streets, sniffing petrol and drinking hand sanitiser.

“That is what matters more than some Brunswick-driven debate about Australia Day.

“Move the day if we must, celebrate it somewhere else, but help these kids, help these people.”

Press PLAY below to hear Neil Mitchell’s view