Western Australia

Western Australia is Australia's largest state, covering the westernmost third of the mainland, bordering South Australia and the Northern Territory.

Geography

The state capital is the city of Perth on the south-western coastline; the centre of a metropolitan area which is home to almost three quarters of the state's residents. The Perth metropolitan area has grown to include the port of Fremantle and the towns of Rockingham and Mandurah. Other important or well-known centres include Bunbury, Kalgoorlie, Albany, Geraldton, Port Hedland and Broome, but these are all small cities or towns. The south-west coastal area is relatively temperate and forested, while much of the rest of the state is hot and semi-arid or desert, and is lightly inhabited. An exception to this is the northern tropical regions, especially The Kimberley.

People

Although Western Australia has been occupied by Aboriginal people for many thousands of years, the present State has its origins in the British settlement known as the Swan River Colony, founded at Perth in 1829. Since that time, many immigrants have also been of British origin, outnumbered only by arrivals from other Australian States. There has also been significant immigration from New Zealand. Small numbers of Southeast Asian (especially ethnic Chinese) immigrants began to arrive in Western Australia in the mid 19th century. Immigration restrictions (the "White Australia Policy") caused "non-white" immigration to cease in the 1890s. Following World War II, immigration from Europe increased, especially from Italy, Yugoslavia and Greece. In the 1970s, a new wave of Asian immigrants, mostly ethnic Chinese and Vietnamese began to arrive in Western Australia. Perth, in particular, paralleled the multicultural experience of other large Australian cities and has become home to people from most of the countries in the world. Presently, 11.9% of Western Australian residents were born in the United Kingdom or Ireland, while 5.3% were born in Asia. In recent years, Western Australia has had the highest overseas migration rates in the nation.

Economy

Western Australia's economy has been largely based on the extraction and export of mining and petroleum commodities, especially iron ore, natural gas, nickel and gold. Western Australia is also a leading alumina extractor, producing more than 20% of the world's aluminium.

Agricultural exports are also important, especially wheat, barley and sheep products such as wool and meat. In recent years, tourism has grown in importance, with the majority of visitors coming from the United Kingdom and Ireland, Singapore, Japan and Malaysia.

Media

Western Australia has only one daily newspaper, the independent tabloid The West Australian, and one Sunday tabloid newspaper, News Corporation's The Sunday Times.

Metropolitan Perth has six broadcast television stations, while regional Western Australia is served by four broadcast networks. The regional southwest of the state is also served by pay television giant Foxtel, which acquired the Galaxy Television satellite service in the 1990s.

Government

Western Australia took part in Australian federation in 1901, and is subject to all laws and regulations made by the Australian Parliament and Australian Government in Canberra. In a referendum in April 1933, 68% of voters voted for the state to leave the Commonwealth of Australia with the aim of returning to the British Empire as an autonomous territory. The State Government sent a delegation to Westminster, however the British Government refused to intervene in the situation and so no action was taken to implement this decision.

Many political responsibilities still rest with the State Parliament and State Government, located in the state capital city of Perth. Australian citizens residing in Western Australia elect members to the two houses of the parliament: the Legislative Assembly, often referred to as the lower house, and the Legislative Council, or the upper House.

The party or coalition of parties holding a majority of seats in the lower house of Parliament forms the Government of Western Australia, and the leader of this party (or of the largest party in the coalition) becomes the Premier of Western Australia. The current Premier of Western Australia is Geoff Gallop, the state leader of the Australian Labor Party.

The Queen of Australia, Queen Elizabeth II, is represented in Western Australia by a Governor, currently John Sanderson. Acting in a largely ceremonial position, the Governor acts to approve legislation which has passed through Parliament. The Governor lives in the beautiful Government House in the heart of Perth City, surrounded by lush gardens.

See also

• List of Governors of Western Australia
• Premier of Western Australia
• History of Western Australia
• National Parks of Western Australia
• Local Government Areas of Western Australia
• List of Statues in Western Australia
• Western Plateau

External links

• Official Western Australia site (http://www.wa.gov.au/)
• Parliament House Western Australia (http://www.parliament.wa.gov.au/)
• Government House Web Site (http://www.govhouse.wa.gov.au/)
• OnlineWA (http://www.onlinewa.com.au/)
• State Law Publisher (http://www.slp.wa.gov.au/)

Australia
States and mainland territories
Australian Capital Territory | New South Wales | Northern Territory | Queensland | South Australia | Tasmania | Victoria | Western Australia
Jervis Bay Territory
External territories
Ashmore and Cartier Islands | Australian Antarctic Territory | Christmas Island | Cocos (Keeling) Islands | Coral Sea Islands | Heard Island and McDonald Islands | Norfolk Island

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