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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is not deterred by polling that shows support for a constitutionally enshrined Indigenous voice has dropped below 50 per cent in every state.

He brushed off suggestions a 'yes' vote at the referendum was in trouble, saying there was a long way to go before Australians cast their ballots.

"We have a range of (no) campaigns designed to create confusion, really, in the community," he told ABC Radio on Monday.

"There is nothing to fear from this process and everything to gain."

The 'yes' case hasn't secured an absolute majority in any state, a Newspoll demographic analysis published by The Australian on Monday suggested.

It found those most likely to support the Indigenous advisory body were higher-income earners, the university-educated, renters and the young.

Those opposed to the voice included voters with no tertiary education, retirees, mortgagees and people who owned their home outright.

While the race was still close, a referendum based on current attitudes would fail to meet the threshold for success.

Opposition Indigenous Australians spokeswoman Jacinta Nampijinpa Price said the polling reflected people's wishes for more information about the voice.

"There are a lot more Indigenous Australians out there who don't feel like they've been represented through the Uluru Statement from the Heart," she said.

But former Nationals MP Andrew Gee, who quit the party due to its opposition to the voice, said large groups of voters were being alienated as a result of the coalition's position.

"I think the voice will succeed, I think we will get it over the line, but if it does not there will be a real emptiness about what has happened," he said.

"I think it's a very short-sighted attitude (for the coalition) to take and I think longer term when the history books are written, history will judge them very poorly for it."

Indigenous Australians Minister Linda Burney said she felt a momentum in favour of the voice that was not reflected in the polls.

"Every day there is someone significant coming out supporting the 'yes' campaign ... everywhere I go, I feel that momentum," she said.

Ms Burney said the opposition was trying to muddy the waters with questions about things the voice would not be about.

She said the debate was taking a toll on Indigenous Australians, particularly young people.

"(The voice) will make a practical difference to the lives of Aboriginal people ... that is why it is worth going forward with this referendum," she said.

"I've been involved in Aboriginal politics for 44 years and I have seen many, many things and I can tell you that this chance at constitutional reform is our shot in the locker that's going to make a difference."

The referendum is due to be held in the last quarter of the year and the prime minister will announce the date in coming weeks.

© AAP 2023

Aged-care residents could see the cost of their medicines go up if planned dispensing changes go ahead as the pharmacy guild urges the federal government to pause the policy.

Under changes due to come into effect from September 1, up to six million people will be able to buy two months' worth of subsidised medicines with a single prescription, rather than just a one-month supply.

The change would apply to more than 300 medicines, including treatments for conditions such as heart disease, cholesterol, Crohn's disease and hypertension.

The policy was estimated to save the government $1.2 billion over the next four years, with that money to be reinvested into community pharmacy health programs.

But the peak body representing pharmacies said almost every aged-care resident would be faced with an extra $800 per year cost to have their medicine packed and delivered.

Pharmacy Guild national president Trent Twomey said this was because facilities would need to charge patients for the service because of the 50 per cent cut to pharmacy dispensing funding.

"This will be a crisis for aged care with our most vulnerable Australians forced to pay for a policy change that doesn't benefit them," he said.

At the moment, medicines are packed and delivered to aged care residents free of charge as the cost is subsidised by dispensing fees.

But the guild said industry and government data showed the free service cost $15.50 per week for each resident, equating to $806 annually.

© AAP 2023

Fire investigators remain at the scene of a deadly Queensland house fire that claimed the lives of five young boys and their father on an island off Brisbane.

The man, named by multiple media outlets as 34-year-old Wayne Godinet, was reportedly trying to rescue his children when he succumbed to the blaze.

The family's 28-year-old mother, identified in reports as Samantha Stephenson, survived the inferno by escaping when the two-storey Russell Island home was engulfed in flames about 6am on Sunday.

Police said a 21-year-old woman also escaped the house unharmed.

Emergency crews arrived to find the two women outside the house suffering smoke inhalation.

Witnesses said Ms Stephenson was seen screaming for help, telling first responders her family was trapped inside the burning home.

The blaze spread to two other properties that were saved by firefighters.

Several people from the neighbouring properties were also treated by ambulance officers for smoke inhalation and minor burns.

Three people were taken to hospitals on the mainland for treatment, including Ms Stephenson.

Authorities spent Sunday afternoon at the scene working to piece together the origin of the fire.

Fire investigators found the bodies of Mr Godinet and the five boys - aged 11, 10, twins aged four and a three-year-old - inside the burnt-out home late on Sunday.

A post-mortem and scientific examination will be conducted to formally confirm their identities.

The small Russell Island community has been hard hit by the tragedy, with the victims known to local emergency personnel.

The eight-kilometre-long island lies between the Queensland mainland and North Stradbroke Island and has a population of about 3700.

Queensland Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll thanked the "brave" first responders for their efforts at what could only be described as a devastating scene.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and others shared sympathies for those involved in the tragedy.

"My thoughts are with the whole Russell Island community at this very sad and tragic time," she tweeted on Sunday.

Local authorities are setting up a fundraising account through the local registered charitable trust, The Redland Foundation.

© AAP 2023