Telling it like it is - one place at a time
At some point during the first months of 2025, Victoria's population reached 7 million. This milestone seemed to slip under the radar, with almost no reporting in mainstream media. Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia, and in recent years population change has been extremely volatile. Let's have a look at Victoria's path to a population of 7 million.
The latest release of regional population estimates from the ABS contains a wealth of data about population change across Australia. Which areas are growing the fastest, which areas are declining, and importantly, how these areas are changing. Tasmania provides an interesting case study to delve deeper into the data. It's not that long ago that Tasmania's growth rate was relatively strong, but is this still the case? And where is the growth occurring in Tasmania?
Queensland was by far Australia's fastest growing state in 2022. This continues trends that have been in place for the last two years. Population growth has been driven primarily by increasing volumes of interstate migration. This blog describes recent population trends in Queensland, with a particular focus on interstate migration.
Although the release of 2021 Census data is gaining a lot of media attention, the ABS also released updated population estimates at the same time. This new data presents rebased estimates that are tied to the 2021 Census. It is part of the five year cycle of population estimates produced by the ABS - once the current estimates are finalised, the next rebasing will occur after the 2026 Census. What does this new data tell us about Australia's population in 2021?
Queensland is currently the fastest growing state in Australia. In 2020-21, the population increased by 0.9%, well above the national average of 0.2%. The volume of growth was just shy of 46,000 people. Queensland's population growth is driven by interstate migration. In recent years, the volume has increased, and has accelerated since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. But it's not all sunshine and roses. This blog looks at population change by SA2 in South East Queensland (SEQ). It shows that while there are pockets of strong growth, at the same time, some areas recorded a decline in population.
In the last couple of years I've lost count of the number of times that I've been told that population forecasts are useless because of the impacts brought about by COVID-19. Certainly I've written many blogs that describe the demographic impact of the pandemic, but does this render population forecasts useless? We do live in uncertain times, but I argue that they remain as relevant as ever. Read on to find out why.
Australia's population continues to be influenced by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the policy changes implemented to control the spread. Historically, South Australia has grown at a modest rate, and its population has an older age profile. But more recently, the state has recorded small gains from interstate migration. Will this make a difference to the ageing trend?
Much as I appreciate the ABS releasing population data every quarter, March and September generally have limited interest for me. This year is different. The release of the March 2021 quarter data means there is now a full year to assess the impact of the international border closure on population change. I've blogged previously about the potential impacts of this on population change, particularly overseas migration. Now that we have the data, what does it tell us?
It seems that not a week goes by without reading an article that highlights the sea/tree change phenomenon. The tone of these articles suggests that people are leaving Sydney and Melbourne in such numbers that the streets are devoid of people and life - save the obligatory tumbleweed. Recent ABS data releases on internal migration have meant that more timely analysis of the ebbs and flows of people around the country is possible. So what exactly is happening? Let a demographer, not a property analyst, put it all into context.
The latest release of regional population data by the ABS showed that the City of Perth recorded the strongest growth of all LGAs in Australia (7.1%). This was an intriguing outcome, and is indicative of an upward shift in population growth in Western Australia (WA) over the last two years. But has this been uniform across the state? What trends can be seen at a local level? Read on to find out.
This year I've published several blogs that look at the impact of COVID-19 on population change. These have considered the impact of travel restrictions on overseas migration, as this is the driver of population growth in Australia. However internal migration is an important driver of change within Australia. The ABS recently released provisional estimates of internal migration for the period up to June 2020. This data will feed into the regional population estimates for 2019-2020, providing insights into the numbers that will be released in March 2021. What are the highlights of this latest release, and what does this mean for population change?
In the second half of 2018, the population of NSW reached 8 million - a milestone that was 230 years in the making. Population wise, NSW is Australia's largest state, and it is also the state that was first settled by Europeans. The state capital, Sydney, is a global city which is one of the main gateways for overseas migrants. This blog looks at the history of population growth in NSW from 1788 to 2019.
