Launceston is a city in the north of Tasmania, Australia, at the confluence of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River (kanamaluka). As of 2021, the Launceston urban area has a population of 90,953. Launceston is the second most populous city in Tasmania after the state capital, Hobart. As of 2020, Launceston is the 18th largest city in Australia. Launceston is the fifth-largest inland city and the ninth-largest non-capital city in Australia. Launceston is regarded as the most livable regional city, and was one of the most popular regional cities to move to in Australia from 2020 to 2021. Launceston was named Australian Town of the Year in 2022.
James Alexander Bacon, AC was an Australian politician who served as Premier of Tasmania from 1998 to 2004.
The history of Tasmania begins at the end of the Last Glacial Period when it is believed that the island was joined to the Australian mainland. Little is known of the human history of the island until the British colonisation of Tasmania in the 19th century.
Andrew Damien Wilkie is an Australian politician and independent federal member for Clark. Before entering politics Wilkie was an infantry officer in the Australian Army.
The Wrest Point Hotel Casino is a casino in Tasmania. It was Australia's first legal casino, opening in the suburb of Sandy Bay in Hobart, on 10 February 1973.
Federal Group is a privately owned family company which operates tourism, hospitality, retail, and a national sensitive freight company but is primarily known for their casino and gaming assets in Tasmania which is described as "a licence to print money". In the past the company has been known as both "Federal Hotels" or "Federal Hotels and Resorts".
Casino Canberra is a casino located in the Central Business District of Canberra, the capital city of Australia.
William Edward Felix Hodgman is an Australian diplomat and former politician who has been the High Commissioner of Australia to Singapore since February 2021. He was the 45th Premier of Tasmania and a member for the Division of Franklin in the Tasmanian House of Assembly from the 2002 state election until his resignation in January 2020. He became premier following the 2014 state election, having been Leader of the Opposition since 2006. He was re-elected to a second term in government following victory in the 2018 state election.
Australian rules football in Tasmania, has been played since the late 1870s and draws the largest audience for a football code in the state.
Kevin Orchard Lyons was an Australian politician and member of the Tasmanian House of Assembly representing the seat of Darwin.
The Tasmanian casino referendum was a one-question referendum held on 14 December 1968, which concerned the granting of Australia's first casino licence to the Federal Group to operate the Wrest Point Hotel Casino in Sandy Bay.
Gambling is an activity undertaken by many Australians. In 2022, 72.8% of Australian adults gambled within the previous 12 months and 38% of Australian adults gambled at least once per week. In 2017, Australians were estimated to lead the world with the highest gambling losses on a per-capita basis.
Rebecca Peta White is an Australian politician. She has been the Leader of the Opposition in Tasmania and Leader of the Parliamentary Labor Party in Tasmania since July 2021, having previously served in that role from March 2017 until May 2021. She has been a member of the Tasmanian House of Assembly in the electorate of Lyons since the 2010 state election. Previously, White served as Shadow Minister for Health and Human Services, and Opposition Spokesperson for Children.
The 2018 Tasmanian state election was held on 3 March 2018 to elect all 25 members of the Tasmanian House of Assembly.
Madeleine Ruth Ogilvie is an Australian lawyer and politician. She is a Liberal Party member of the Tasmanian House of Assembly representing the Division of Clark and is the Minister for Small Business, Advanced Manufacturing and Defence Industries, Science and Technology, Racing and Heritage in the Rockliff ministry. She was previously the Minister for Hospitality, Racing, Small Business, Women and Disability Services in the Second Gutwein Ministry for six weeks.
The Tasmanian Heritage Register is the statutory heritage register of the Australian state of Tasmania. It is defined as a list of areas currently identified as having historic cultural heritage importance to Tasmania as a whole. The Register is kept by the Tasmanian Heritage Council within the meaning of the Tasmanian Historic Cultural Heritage Act 1995. It encompasses in addition the Heritage Register of the Tasmanian branch of the National Trust of Australia, which was merged into the Tasmanian Heritage Register. The enforcement of the heritage's requirements is managed by Heritage Tasmania.
The 2021 Tasmanian state election was held on 1 May 2021 to elect all 25 members to the Tasmanian House of Assembly.
The Tasmanian Labor Party, officially known as the Australian Labor Party (Tasmanian Branch) and commonly referred to simply as Tasmanian Labor, is the Tasmanian branch of the Australian Labor Party. It has been one of the most successful state Labor parties in Australia in terms of electoral success.
Tasmania has been notable in the history of gambling in Australia.
James Boyce is an Australian author and historian based in Tasmania. He has written four major books on Australian history and the history of Western thought.
