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Post-War Prosperity and Changing Society

After the war Australia entered a boom period. Millions of refugees and migrants arrived in Australia, many of them young people happy to embrace their new lives with energy and vigour. The number of Australians employed in the manufacturing industry had grown steadily since the beginning of the century. Many women who had taken over factory work while men were away at war were able to continue working in peacetime.

The economy developed rapidly in the 1950s with major nation-building projects such as the Snowy Mountains Scheme, a hydro-electric power scheme located in Australia’s Southern Alps. Suburban Australia also prospered. The rate of home ownership rose dramatically from barely 40 per cent in 1947 to more than 70 per cent by 1960.

Other developments included the expansion of the social security net and the development of television. Melbourne hosted the Olympic Games of 1956, shining the international spotlight on Australia. (In 2000, the Olympic Games came to Australia a second time, hosted by Sydney.)

The 1960s were a period of change for Australia. The ethnic diversity produced by post-war immigration, the decline of the United Kingdom and the Vietnam War (to which Australia sent troops) all contributed to the atmosphere of political, economic and social change.

In 1967 the Australian people voted overwhelmingly in a national referendum to give the federal government the power to pass legislation on behalf of the Indigenous Australians and to include the Indigenous Australians in future censuses. The referendum result was the culmination of a strong campaign by both Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Australians. It was widely seen as a strong affirmation of the Australian people’s wish to see its government take direct action to improve the living conditions of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

The long post-war domination of national politics by the coalition of the Liberal and Country (now National) parties ended in 1972, when the Australian Labor Party was elected. The next three years saw major changes in Australia’s social and economic policy agenda and a legislative program of reforms in health, education, foreign affairs, social security and industrial relations. However, in 1975 a constitutional crisis resulted in Labor Prime Minister Gough Whitlam being dismissed by the Governor-General. In the subsequent general election the Labor Party suffered a major defeat and the Liberal–National Coalition ruled until 1983, when the Labor Party again won office.

The Hawke-Keating Labor governments were in office from 1983 till 1996. They introduced a number of economic reforms, such as deregulating the banking system and floating the Australian dollar. In 1996 a Coalition Government led by John Howard won the general election and was re-elected in 1998, 2001 and 2004. The Liberal-National Coalition Government enacted several reforms, including changes in the taxation and industrial relations systems.

In 2007 Mr. Kevin Rudd led the Australian Labor Party to government with policies designed to build modern Australia equipped to meet the challenges of the future – including tackling climate change, reforming Australia’s health and hospital system, investing in education and skills training and reforming Australia’s workplace laws.



Today Australia is one of the most cosmopolitan and dynamic societies in the world. Over 200 languages are spoken, with English the common language. The nation has thriving ethnic media, an international business reputation, an innovative artistic community, diverse religious and cultural activities and variety in foods, restaurants, fashion and architecture.

 

TASKS

I. Read the text. Find the words that match the definitions below:

1) the act of finding something that had not been known before;

2) a form of a language that is spoken in a particular part of a country or by a particular group of people and that contains some words, grammar, or pronunciations ( the ways in which words are said) that are different from the forms used in other parts or by other groups;

3) an object that is respected by a group of people, especially for religious reasons;

4) a large area of land where it is always very hot and dry, and there is a lot of sand;

5) a tropical forest with tall trees that are very close together, growing in an area where it rains a lot;

6) a member of your family who lived a long time ago;

7) a half of the earth, especially one of the halves above and below the equator;

8) a part of the sea that is partly enclosed by a curve in the land;

9) someone who has been proved to be guilty of a crime and sent to prison;

10) a prison - used especially in the names of prisons;

11) when large numbers of people go to live in another area or country, especially in order to find work;

12) people who belong to a high social class;

13) a group of people who have the same interests, religion, race etc.;

14) to show by marking a paper, raising your hand etc which person you want to elect or whether you support a particular plan;

15) extreme sadness, especially because someone you love has died.


Date: 2016-03-03; view: 865


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II. HISTORY AND ETHNIC RELATIONS | Write down your own sentences with these words.
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