On 1st January 1901 the individual British colonies joined together to form the Commonwealth of Australia consisting of six states (New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia) and two territories (Australian Capital Territory, where Canberra is situated and the Northern Territory).

State governments are modelled on the British Westminster system. Each state has a Premier who is the leader of the political party in power. All states have an Executive Council consisting of the Governor, State Premier and selected Ministers.

State parliaments deal with affairs such as education, transport, law enforcement, health services and agriculture, as well as sharing mutual responsibilities with the federal parliament.

Australians are one of the world's most urbanised societies (nearly 90% of the population live in urban areas along the coast). The most populous city is Sydney (4.2 million), followed by Melbourne (3.5m), Brisbane (1.7m), Perth (1.4m), Adelaide (1.1m), Canberra (330,000), Hobart (200,000) and Darwin (100,000).

As the smallest continent, Australia has only a population of just over 20 million. With a decline in natural population, there has been an emphasis on immigration. It is not surprising to find that 25% of Australians are born overseas. For the first time since assisted sea travel which earned the nickname '"ten pound poms", there has been a recent concerted move by the Federal Government to increase immigration and attract much needed skills/trades people.

The UK and New Zealand are the largest source countries for new arrivals, but other significant countries include: China, South Africa and Malaysia. The top three destination States in descending order are New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland for these new arrivals.

Because of the vastness of the country, Australia is divided into three time zones, e.g. Perth is 2 hours behind Brisbane, but only one and a half hours behind Adelaide - this becomes even more confusing when daylight saving is applied during the summer months!

The weather, like the geography of this vast continent, also differs considerably. For up-to-date weather conditions and forecasts, check: www.bom.gov.au