The line graph presents data on the proportion of Australian residents coming from different parts of the world over the period from 1976 to 2011.
Overall, while the proportion of immigrants from the UK declined steadily throughout the period, the figures for Asia and other regions generally increased. As a result, despite some fluctuations, the total percentage ended slightly higher than its initial level.
In 1976, the UK was the largest source of immigrants, accounting for about 14%, compared to 11% from other regions and only 6% from Asia. However, the proportion from the UK fell consistently over the following decades, dropping to 10% in 1986 and then to just 5% by 2011, making it the smallest contributor at the end of the period.
By contrast, immigration from Asia rose steadily from 6% in 1976 to around 10% in 1996, before climbing more sharply to 15% in 2011, becoming the second dominant source.
Meanwhile, the figure for immigrants from other regions experienced a slight decline at the beginning of the period, falling from 11% in 1976, to approximately 8% in the mid-1980s. However, this trend then reversed, and the proportion increased gradually over the following years, reaching a peak of around 14% in 2006 before ending slightly lower at about 13% in 2011. Total numbers remained between 19 and 25 million throughout the period with a low point in 1996 and a peak in 2011.