When did Britain end convict transportation to eastern Australia?

The British government officially ended the transportation of convicts to eastern Australia in 1852.1

This decision followed a period of growing opposition from colonists who increasingly disliked the practice of "convictism," particularly after the assignment of convicts to private employers—which many critics likened to slavery—was abolished in 1840. While transportation to the eastern colonies ceased in 1852, it is worth noting that transportation to Western Australia had begun in 1850 at the request of local colonists and continued until 1868. In total, approximately 151,000 convicts were sent to eastern Australia throughout the duration of the penal system there.1