The Australian States and Territories comprise the Commonwealth of Australia under a federal system of government. The word federal in a general sense refers to the nature of an agreement between or among two or more states, nations, or other groups to merge into a union in which control of common affairs is held by a central authority created by and with the consent of the...

Image File history File links Download high resolution version (938x878, 56 KB) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...

States and Territories of Australia

(Listed with capital city and number corresponding to map, where applicable)

States

• New South Wales (NSW) (Sydney) (#2)
• Victoria (VIC) (Melbourne) (#3)
• Queensland (QLD) (Brisbane) (#4)
• South Australia (SA) (Adelaide) (#5)
• Western Australia (WA) (Perth) (#6)
• Tasmania (TAS) (Hobart) (#7)

File links The following pages link to this file: New South Wales Jack Lang (Australian politician) George Reid (Australian politician) Flags of the Australian states and territories Flag of New South Wales Wikipedia:Australian Wikipedians notice board Template:NewSouthWalesPremiers Categories: Flag images | Australia images ... Motto: Orta Recens Quam Pura Nites (Newly Risen, How Brightly You Shine) Nickname: First State, Premier State Other Australian states and territories Capital Sydney Government Governor Premier Const. ... Sydney is the capital city of the Australian state of New South Wales and Australias largest and oldest city (founded in 1788). ... File links The following pages link to this file: Victoria (Australia) Flags of the Australian states and territories Charles Gavan Duffy Flag of Victoria User:Xtra Wikipedia:Australian Wikipedians notice board Template:VictoriaPremiers James Francis George Kerferd Categories: Flag images | Australia images ... Motto: Peace and Prosperity Nickname: Garden State Other Australian states and territories Capital Melbourne Government Governor Premier Const. ... City of Melbourne Local Government Area State Victoria Lord Mayor John So (since 2001) Area 36 km² Population (2001) 57,960 Density 1,601/km² (1999) Greater Melbourne Subdivisions Local Government Areas Area 7,694 km² (1999) Population 2001 census (2nd in Australia) 3,555,321 Density 462. ... File links The following pages link to this file: Queensland Flags of the Australian states and territories Flag of Queensland Categories: Flag images | Australia images ... Motto: Audax at Fidelis (Bold but Faithful) Nickname: Sunshine State/Smart State Other Australian states and territories Capital Brisbane Government Governor Premier Const. ... Brisbane is the capital city of the state of Queensland, Australia. ... File links The following pages link to this file: South Australia Flag of South Australia Flags of the Australian states and territories Wikipedia:Australian Wikipedians notice board Peterborough, South Australia User:ScottDavis Light Regional Council District Council of Mount Barker User:Cyberjunkie/Contributions/Random Template talk:Australia state or territory... Motto: United for the Common Wealth Nickname: Festival State Other Australian states and territories Capital Adelaide Government Governor Premier Const. ... Adelaide is the capital city of the Australian state of South Australia. ... File links The following pages link to this file: Flag of Western Australia John Forrest, 1st Baron Forrest of Bunbury George Leake Newton Moore Flags of the Australian states and territories Wikipedia:Australian Wikipedians notice board Template:WesternAustraliaPremiers Categories: Flag images | Australia images ... Motto: Cygnis Insignis (Distinguished by its swans) Nickname: Wildflower State Other Australian states and territories Capital Perth Government Governor Premier Const. ... Perth is the capital city of Western Australia. ... File links The following pages link to this file: Flag of Tasmania Flags of the Australian states and territories Paul Lennon Wikipedia:Australian Wikipedians notice board Edward Braddon Template:TasmaniaPremiers Categories: Flag images | Australia images ... Motto: Ubertas et Fidelitas (Fertility and Faithfulness) Nickname: The Apple Isle Other Australian states and territories Capital Hobart Government Governor Premier Const. ... Hobart is the capital city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. ...

Mainland territories

• Australian Capital Territory (ACT) (Canberra) (#1)
• Northern Territory (NT) (Darwin) (#8)
• Jervis Bay Territory

File links The following pages link to this file: Australian Capital Territory Flag of Australian Capital Territory Flags of the Australian states and territories Wikipedia:Australian Wikipedians notice board Template:Canberra suburb stub Template:Canberra-stub Template:ACTChiefMinisters Categories: Flag images | Australia images | Australian territory flag images ... Motto: Pro Rege, Lege et Grege (For the Queen, the Law and the People) Nickname: (none) Other Australian states and territories Capital Canberra Government Administrator Chief Minister Const. ... Canberra is the capital city of Australia and, with a population of just over 323,000, is also Australias largest inland city. ... File links The following pages link to this file: Clare Martin Flag of Northern Territory Ian Tuxworth Marshall Perron Denis Burke Flags of the Australian states and territories Wikipedia:Australian Wikipedians notice board Australian court hierarchy Template:NorthernTerritoryChiefMinisters Categories: Flag images | Australia images ... Motto: None Nickname: ? Other Australian states and territories Capital Darwin Government Administrator Chief Minister Const. ... Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, and is a city of 109,478 (est. ... Image File history File links Australia_flag_large. ... The Jervis Bay Territory is a territory of the Commonwealth of Australia. ...

External territories

• Ashmore and Cartier Islands
• Norfolk Island
• Christmas Island
• Cocos and Keeling Islands
• Coral Sea Islands Territory
• Heard and McDonald Islands
• Australian Antarctic Territory

See also: Ranked list of Australian states

Image File history File links Flag_of_Australia. ... Large flag of Norfolk Island File links The following pages link to this file: Norfolk Island Flag of Norfolk Island User:DanielZm/test2 Flags of non-sovereign nations User:Matthewmayer/Sandbox/Flags Template:Norfolk Island infobox User:Midom/flags sandbox List of FIFA country codes 2002 Commonwealth Games medal count... File links The following pages link to this file: Christmas Island Flags of non_sovereign nations Categories: Flag images ... File links The following pages link to this file: Cocos (Keeling) Islands Categories: Images with unknown source ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Australia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Australia. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Australia. ... The Australian Antarctic Territory (AAT) is the part of Antarctica claimed by Australia. ... By population By area By population density Category: Ranked lists of subnational entities ...

Background and overview

The states originated as separate British colonies prior to Federation (in 1901). Their powers are protected by the Australian constitution, and Commonwealth legislation only applies to the states where permitted by the constitution. The territories, by contrast, are from a constitutional perspective directly subject to the Commonwealth government. The Australian Parliament has powers to legislate in the territories that it does not possess in the states. The Constitution of Australia consists of a number of documents. ...

Most of the territories are directly administered by the Commonwealth government, while three (the Northern Territory, the Australian Capital Territory and Norfolk Island) administer themselves. In the self-governing territories the Australian Parliament retains the full power to legislate, and can override laws made by the territorial institutions, which it has done on rare occasion. For the purposes of Australian (and joint Australia-New Zealand) intergovernmental bodies, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory are treated as a state.

Furthermore, the distribution of powers between the Commonwealth and the territories is different from that between the Commonwealth and the states. In the Northern Territory, the Commonwealth retains the power to directly administer uranium mining and Aboriginal lands, powers which it does not possess with respect to the states. Indigenous peoples are: Peoples living in an area prior to colonization by a state Peoples living in an area within a nation-state, prior to the formation of a nation-state, but who do not identify with the dominant nation. ...

Each state has a Governor, appointed by the Queen, which by convention she does on the advice of the state Premier. The Administrators of the Northern Territory and of Norfolk Island are, by contrast, appointed by the Governor-General. The Australian Capital Territory has neither a Governor or Administrator, but the Governor-General exercises some powers that in other jurisdictions are exercised by the Governor of a state or Administrator of a territory, such as the power to dissolve the Legislative Assembly. Queen Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor), born 21 April 1926, is the Queen regnant of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Antigua and... Michael Jeffery, Governor-General of Australia The Governor-General of Australia is the representative in Australia of Australias head of state, Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, who lives in the United Kingdom. ...

Each state has a bicameral Parliament except Queensland, which abolished its upper house in 1922. The lower house is called the Legislative Assembly, except in South Australia and Tasmania, where it is called the House of Assembly. Tasmania is the only state to use proportional representation for elections to its lower house; all others elect members from single member constituencies, using the alternative vote. The upper house is called the Legislative Council, and is generally elected from multi-member constituencies using proportional representation. The three self-governing territories, the ACT, the Northern Territory and Norfolk Island, have unicameral Legislative Assemblies. In government, bicameralism is the practice of having two legislative or parliamentary chambers. ... An aerial view of Parliament of India at New Delhi. ... 1922 (MCMXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Proportional representation (PR) is any election system which ensures a proportionally representative result of a democratic election, x% of votes should be represented by x% in the democratic institutions, parliament or congress. ... When the single transferable vote voting system is applied to a single-winner election it is sometimes called instant-runoff voting (IRV), as it is much like holding a series of runoff elections in which the lowest polling candidate is eliminated in each round until someone receives majority vote. ... Unicameralism is the practice of having only one legislative or parliamentary chamber. ...

The head of government of each state is called the Premier, appointed by the state's Governor. In normal circumstances the Governor will appoint as Premier whoever leads the party or coalition which exercises control of the lower house (in the case of Queensland, the only house) of the state Parliament. However, in times of constitutional crisis, the Governor can appoint someone else as Premier. The head of government of a self-governing territory is called the Chief Minister, and likewise they are appointed by the territory's Administrator, in normal circumstances to whoever controls the territory's Legislative Assembly.

Compared Terminology

The Parliament of New South Wales consists of the Governor of New South Wales, the New South Wales Legislative Council and the New South Wales Legislative Assembly. ... The Parliament of Victoria is a bicameral legislature. ... The Parliament of Queensland consists of the Governor of Queensland and the Queensland Legislative Assembly. ... The Parliament of South Australia consists of the South Australian Legislative Council and the South Australian House of Assembly. ... Motto: Ubertas et Fidelitas (Fertility and Faithfulness) Nickname: The Apple Isle Other Australian states and territories Capital Hobart Government Governor Premier Const. ... The Parliament of Western Australia consists of the Governor of Western Australia, the Western Australian Legislative Council and the Western Australian Legislative Assembly. ... The Legislative Assembly is the only chamber of parliament in the Australian Capital Territory. ... The Legislative Assembly is the only chamber of parliament in the Northern Territory in Australia. ...

Governors of States and Administrators of Territories

Main article: Governors of the Australian states

• Governor of Western Australia - His Excellency Lieutenant General John Sanderson AC; appointed August 2000
• Governor of New South Wales - Her Excellency Professor Marie Bashir AC; appointed March 2001
• Governor of Victoria - His Excellency John Landy, AC MBE; appointed October 2001
• Governor of South Australia - Her Excellency Marjorie Jackson-Nelson AC CVO MBE; appointed November 2001
• Governor of Queensland - Her Excellency Ms Quentin Bryce AC; appointed July 2003
• Governor of Tasmania - His Excellency William Cox AC RFD ED; appointed December 2004
• Administrator of the Northern Territory - Mr Ted Egan AM; appointed October 2003
• Administrator of Norfolk Island - The Honourable Grant Tambling; appointed November 2003

The Governors of the Australian states are the representatives in the six states of Australia of Australias head of state, Queen Elizabeth II. The Governors perform the same constitutional and ceremonial functions in the states as does the Governor-General of Australia at the national level. ... List of Governors of Western Australia See Governors of the Australian states for a description and history of the office of Governor. ... John Sanderson (born in Geraldton in November 1940) is an Australian military officer. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... List of Governors of New South Wales See Governors of the Australian states for a description and history of the office of Governor. ... Her Excellency Professor Marie Bashir AC is the current Governor of New South Wales. ... 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... List of Governors of Victoria See Governors of the Australian states for a description and history of the office of Governor. ... John Michael Landy AC MBE, (born April 12, 1930) is a former track athlete and the 26th Governor of Victoria, Australia. ... 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... See Governors of the Australian states for a description and history of the office of Governor. ... Marjorie Jackson (born September 13, 1931 in Coffs Harbour) is an Australian athlete and the current Governor of South Australia under the name of Marjorie Jackson Nelson. ... 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... List of Governors of Queensland See Governors of the Australian states for a description and history of the office of Governor. ... Quentin Bryce, AC, is a lawyer, by training and currently the Governor of Queensland, Australia. ... 2003 (MMIII) is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... List of Governors of Tasmania Note that Tasmania was called Van Diemens Land until 1855 (see History of Tasmania). ... His Excellency the Honourable William (Bill) J. E. Cox, AC, RFD, ED ( born April 1, 1936 in Hobart, Tasmania) has been Governor of Tasmania since 15 December 2004, prior to which he was the states Chief Justice. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The political office of the Administrator of the Northern Territory of Australia has been held by the following people. ... Ted Egan is an Australian folk musician, and was a public servant who became Administrator of the Northern Territory in 2003. ... 2003 (MMIII) is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Grant Tambling (born 1943) is an Australian politician. ... 2003 (MMIII) is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Premiers and Chief Ministers of States and Territories

Main article: Premiers of the Australian states

• Premier of Queensland - The Hon Peter Beattie MP (ALP); since June 1998
• Premier of Victoria - The Hon Steve Bracks MLA (ALP); since October 1999
• Premier of Western Australia - The Hon Dr Geoff Gallop MLA (ALP); since February 2001
• Chief Minister of the Northern Territory of Australia - Ms Clare Martin MLA (ALP); since August 2001
• Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory - Mr Jon Stanhope MLA (ALP); since November 2001
• Premier of South Australia - The Hon Mike Rann MHA (ALP); since March 2002
• Premier of Tasmania - The Hon Paul Lennon MHA (ALP); since March 2004
• Premier of New South Wales - The Hon Morris Iemma MLA (ALP); since August 2005

The Premiers of the Australian states are the heads of the executive governments in the six states of the Commonwealth of Australia. ... List of Premiers of Queensland Before the 1890s there was no formal party system in Queensland. ... Peter Beattie Peter Douglas Beattie (born November 18, 1952), Australian politician, is the Premier of the Australian State of Queensland and leader of the Australian Labor Party in that state. ... The Australian Labor Party or ALP is Australias oldest political party. ... 1998(MCMXCVIII) is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... List of Premiers of Victoria Before the 1890s there was no formal party system in Victoria. ... Steve Bracks Stephen Phillip Bracks (born October 15, 1954), Australian politician, has been Premier of Victoria since 1999. ... The Australian Labor Party or ALP is Australias oldest political party. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) is a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... The Premier of Western Australia is the head of the executive government in the Australian State of Western Australia. ... Dr. Geoffrey Ian Gallop (born 27 September 1951) has been the Premier of Western Australia since 2001. ... The Australian Labor Party or ALP is Australias oldest political party. ... 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... In Australia, a Chief Minister is the head of government of a self-governing territory, while the head of government of a state is a Premier. ... Clare Majella Martin (born June 15, 1952) is an Australian politician. ... The Australian Labor Party or ALP is Australias oldest political party. ... 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... The Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory is the head of government of the Australian Capital Territory. ... Jon Stanhope (born 1951) is the current Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory, representing the Australian Labor Party. ... The Australian Labor Party or ALP is Australias oldest political party. ... 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... This is a list of Premiers of South Australia. ... Hon. ... The Australian Labor Party or ALP is Australias oldest political party. ... 2002 (MMII) is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Before the 1890s there was no formal party system in Tasmania. ... Paul Lennon (born 1956), Australian politician, has been Premier of Tasmania since 21 March 2004. ... The Australian Labor Party or ALP is Australias oldest political party. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... List of Premiers of New South Wales Before the 1890s there was no formal party system in New South Wales. ... The Hon. ... The Australian Labor Party or ALP is Australias oldest political party. ... 2005 (MMV) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Parliaments of States and Territories

Main article: Parliaments of the Australian states and territories

• Parliament of New South Wales
• Parliament of Queensland
• Parliament of South Australia
• Parliament of Tasmania
• Parliament of Victoria
• Parliament of Western Australia
• Northern Territory Legislative Assembly
• Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly

The Parliaments of the Australian states and territories are legislative bodies within the federal framework of the Commonwealth of Australia. ... The Parliament of New South Wales consists of the Governor of New South Wales, the New South Wales Legislative Council and the New South Wales Legislative Assembly. ... The Parliament of Queensland consists of the Governor of Queensland and the Queensland Legislative Assembly. ... The Parliament of South Australia consists of the South Australian Legislative Council and the South Australian House of Assembly. ... The Parliament of Tasmania consists of the Governor of Tasmania, the Tasmanian Legislative Council and the Tasmanian House of Assembly. ... The Parliament of Victoria is a bicameral legislature. ... The Parliament of Western Australia consists of the Governor of Western Australia, the Western Australian Legislative Council and the Western Australian Legislative Assembly. ... The Legislative Assembly is the only chamber of parliament in the Northern Territory in Australia. ... The Legislative Assembly is the only chamber of parliament in the Australian Capital Territory. ...

State and Territory police forces

Main article: Law enforcement in Australia

• New South Wales Police
• Northern Territory Police
• Queensland Police
• South Australia Police
• Tasmania Police
• Victoria Police
• Western Australia Police

Law enforcement in Australia is served by police, sheriffs and bailiffs under the control of state, territory and the Federal governments. ... Badge of the NSW Police The New South Wales Police (also NSW Police or NSWPOL) is the primary law enforcement agency in the State of New South Wales, Australia. ... The Northern Territory Police have legal jurisdication over the Northern Territory of Australia. ... The Queensland Police Service is the law enforcement agency responsible for policing the Australian state of Queensland. ... The South Australia Police service was formally established in 1839 and is one of the oldest police forces in the world. ... The Tasmania Police service was established in 1899 by unification of smaller regional forces. ... The Victoria Police is the primary law enforcement agency of Victoria, Australia. ... Western Australia Police logo. ...

State and territory statistics

Square kilometre (US spelling: Square kilometer), symbol km², is an SI unit of surface area. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

State and territory codes

* Used for PO Box and Large Users only UK and Australian postal codes are known as postcodes. ... This article or section should be merged with Telephone numbering plan -- ran (talk) 21:23, Jan 30, 2005 (UTC) The area code is a part of a telephone number normally occurring at the beginning of the number, that usually indicates a geographical area. ... Time zones are areas of the Earth that have adopted the same standard time, usually referred to as the local time. ... Mediumwave radio transmissions (sometimes called Medium frequency or MF) are those between the frequencies of 300 kHz and 3000 kHz. ... FM radio is a broadcast technology invented by Edwin Howard Armstrong that uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity broadcast radio sound. ... Television is a telecommunication system for broadcasting and receiving moving pictures and sound over a distance. ... Mrs. ... Daylight saving time (also called DST) is the U.S. term for a system intended to save daylight (the British observe summer time, and likewise the Europeans). ...

See also

• List of capitals of subnational entities
• List of regions in Australia
• ISO 3166-2:AU, the ISO codes for the states and territories of Australia
• Australian States by Gross State Product

List of capitals of subnational entities covers currently the following national entities: #A-C: Angola, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Peoples Republic of China, Colombia, Cuba, Czech Republic, #D-F: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, #G-L: Germany, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Italy... This is a list of regions in Australia that are not Australian states or territories. ... ISO 3166-2:AU is an ISO standard which defines geocodes: it is the subset of ISO 3166-2 which applies to Australia. ... This is a list of Australian States and Territories by GDP. ...

External links

• Maps of Australia
• CityMayors article

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