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THIS PAPER IS ARRANGED BROADLY IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE SUBJECT HEADINGS SUGGESTED BY THE CPA ON 15 JANUARY 1982. HOWEVER, IT MAY BE USEFUL, AS AN INTRODUCTION, TO IDENTIFY THE MAIN FEATURES OF THE AUSTRALIAN PARLIAMENTARY SYSTEM: SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT-FEDERALISM AND THE CABINET SYSTEM OF RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT. CONSTITUTION-WRITTEN AND, TO BE ALTERED, REQUIRES THE APPROVAL OF A MAJORITY OF THE ELECTORS IN A MAJORITY OF THE SIX STATES, AND A MAJORITY OF ALL THE ELECTORS VOTING. LEGISLATURE-THE FEDERAL PARLIAMENT CONSISTS OF THE QUEEN, REPRESENTED BY A GOVERNORGENERAL, AND TWO HOUSES OF PARLIAMENTA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF 125 MEMBERS AND A SENATE OF 64 MEMBERS. MEMBERS' TERMS-THREE YEARS FOR MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES (EXCEPT IN THE CASE OF A MID-TERM DISSOLUTION OF THE HOUSE); AND SIX YEARS FOR SENATORS (EXCEPT IN THE CASE OF A DOUBLE DISSOLUTION OF BOTH HOUSES, WHICH HAS HAPPENED FOUR TIMES SINCE 1901).

A review of research on transnationalism shows that diasporas with transnational orientations and connections tend to have a strong attachment to local and global identities but a weak attachment to the nation state. In addition, it is argued that territorial nation states are losing their authority in an increasingly globalised and interconnected world. Governments in western democracies have responded by tightening restrictions on citizenship and placing more emphasis on social cohesion and integration rather than multiculturalism. Using the Australian Survey of Social Attitudes (2003), this paper examines attachment to cultural conceptions of national identity among the Asian Australian diaspora and examines the existing literature about the relationship between transmigrants and the nation state. Findings from the study reveal a number of social determinants behind variation in emotional attachment to cultural conceptions of national identity.