how many australian states and territories?
City of Moreland Northern Territory Western Australia Australian Capital Territory Victoria Town of Cottesloe New South Wales Queensland Tasmania South Australia
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 Australia has six states — New South Wales ( NSW ) , Queensland ( QLD ) , South Australia ( SA ) , Tasmania ( TAS ) , Victoria ( VIC ) and Western Australia ( WA ) — and two major mainland territories — the Australian Capital Territory ( ACT ) and the Northern Territory ( NT ) . In most respects these two territories function as states , but the Commonwealth Parliament can override any legislation of their parliaments . By contrast , federal legislation overrides state legislation only in areas that are set out in Section 51 of the Australian Constitution ; state parliaments retain all residual legislative powers , including those over schools , state police , the state judiciary , roads , public transport and local government , since these do not fall under the provisions listed in Section 51 . 

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 For about 50 @,@ 000 years before the first British settlement in the late 18th century , Australia was inhabited by indigenous Australians , who spoke languages grouped into roughly 250 language groups . After the European discovery of the continent by Dutch explorers in 1606 , Australia 's eastern half was claimed by Great Britain in 1770 and initially settled through penal transportation to the colony of New South Wales from 26 January 1788 . The population grew steadily in subsequent decades ; the continent was explored and an additional five self @-@ governing crown colonies were established . On 1 January 1901 , the six colonies federated , forming the Commonwealth of Australia . Since federation , Australia has maintained a stable liberal democratic political system that functions as a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy comprising six states and several territories . The population of 24 million is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated in the eastern states and on the coast . 

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 In Australia , the six states and two territories who have been consumed by their respective capital cities are described as " city states " . Union City is the second largest of the six remaining city states after the acquisition of Asio @-@ City . Within this socio @-@ political milieu , the national intelligence agency ASIO wield a great deal of power . 

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 Today , the state consists of four networks : the electrified metropolitan system operated by Metro Trains Melbourne , the country passenger network operated by V / Line and upgraded as part of the Regional Fast Rail project , the standard gauge interstate lines to Adelaide and Sydney , and the grain network in the north west of the state , connected to the ports at Geelong and Portland . 

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 Australia has two public broadcasters ( the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and the multicultural Special Broadcasting Service ) , three commercial television networks , several pay @-@ TV services , and numerous public , non @-@ profit television and radio stations . Each major city has at least one daily newspaper , and there are two national daily newspapers , The Australian and The Australian Financial Review . In 2010 , Reporters Without Borders placed Australia 18th on a list of 178 countries ranked by press freedom , behind New Zealand ( 8th ) but ahead of the United Kingdom ( 19th ) and United States ( 20th ) . This relatively low ranking is primarily because of the limited diversity of commercial media ownership in Australia ; most print media are under the control of News Corporation and Fairfax Media . 
