If/When you go back what WON"T you miss about Australia

[Bobj]

I think my original comments you are referring to were very much in keeping with the title "If/When you go back what WON"T you miss about Australia"

 

And mine were not???

 

Remember the first word of the title...IF:wink:

 

Cheers, Bobj.

[wattsy1982]

And mine were not???

 

Remember the first word of the title...IF:wink:

 

Cheers, Bobj.

 

Im not disputing the word IF...but what I was referring to with your post is that you didnt list anything that you wouldnt miss IF/WHEN you returned....

[Bobj]

Im not disputing the word IF...but what I was referring to with your post is that you didnt list anything that you wouldnt miss IF/WHEN you returned....

 

As I mentioned earlier, I was answering your post originally. I did not know that I had to list anything. Doesn't say so anywhere.

 

Cheers, Bobj.

[Guest]

Thank god I never had to endure that!

 

 

How have you managed to get away with it and the rest of us haven't?!!

[blobby1000]

Agree with the ones above for sure.

 

The word POM bugs the hell out of me...more the fact that other brits (some who have even been here less time than me) use it.....AND also refer to themselves as one!!!

 

The whole ex-pat who think they are aussies is hilarious, i know an ex brit guy who was supporting Aus in the last ashes and has bought an Aussie football shirt for the world cup....hes not been here 6 months yet!!!!!!

 

The use of the word soccer to refer to a game that is clearly called football....(by every other country in the world, except yanks!)

 

One thing that I cringe at more than dislike is the way the sports team are referred to Socceroos, Hockeyroos, wallabies, Matildas....I cringe instantly when i hear that!

 

BUT...before I get abused on this thread by people who have no need to comment on here, I will say my wife and I have just been for a walk along the beach while the kids are at Kindy and it was nice!

 

Oh I can relate to this.....the instant change to being an Australian as soon as some Brits arrive! It's almost as if they are trying to find a short cut to making friends with Aussies by trying to be one. the scary thing is that it works. But it also works to be yourself and allow Australians to like you for who you are rather than who you are pretending to be.

 

i remember this one woman I worked with. She was Scottish, from a beautiful part. She had arrived in Melbourne precisely 2 weeks before us....14 short days. And she spoke to me as if she were the oracle "well, of course, we've been here longer than you" she would state. She had an incongruent frown that went along with her protestations that she was having the time of her life. She used the words: Avro, Barbie, Footy, Ambo, E.D, rocked up, Snags, etc within 2 weeks of getting to Australia (and probably even before that)!!

 

It REALLY bothered me! But now it just seems odd!

[Perthbum]

oh i can relate to this.....the instant change to being an australian as soon as some brits arrive! It's almost as if they are trying to find a short cut to making friends with aussies by trying to be one. The scary thing is that it works. But it also works to be yourself and allow australians to like you for who you are rather than who you are pretending to be.

 

I remember this one woman i worked with. She was scottish, from a beautiful part. She had arrived in melbourne precisely 2 weeks before us....14 short days. And she spoke to me as if she were the oracle "well, of course, we've been here longer than you" she would state. She had an congruent frown that went along with her protestations that she was having the time of her life. She used the words: Avro, barbie, footy, ambo, e.d, rocked up, snags, etc within 2 weeks of getting to australia (and probably even before that)!!

 

It really bothered me! But now it just seems odd!

i hated it when i met a pom who had been there five mins with almost a full oz accent....bit sad.

[Tom28]

Oh I can relate to this.....the instant change to being an Australian as soon as some Brits arrive! It's almost as if they are trying to find a short cut to making friends with Aussies by trying to be one. the scary thing is that it works. But it also works to be yourself and allow Australians to like you for who you are rather than who you are pretending to be.

 

i remember this one woman I worked with. She was Scottish. She had arrived in Melbourne precisely 2 weeks before us....14 short days. And she spoke to me as if she were the oracle "well, of course, we've been here longer than you" she would state. She had an I congruent frown that went along with her protestations that she was having the time of her life. She used the words: Avro, Barbie, Footy, Ambo, E.D, rocked up, Snags, etc within 2 weeks of getting to Australia (and probably even before that)!!

 

It REALLY bothered me! But now it just seems odd!

 

One of our directors is like that. He said to me "we've given the poms a good battering" at the end of the ashes series. I said mate, you're from Wolverhampton! Even the aussies at work to be fair said they had no respect for him. Tosser...

[chrisrich 5]

Hi all,

 

I have been back in the Uk now for 10 months after living in Australia for over 40 years .

I would just like to say how I feel about being back in England ,If someone asked me whats make you happy my reply would be ,being back home ,I can't believe how happy I feel at being here It never cease to amaze me of how beautiful this country is .

And what a great city London is,we are only 45 miles from the centre of London but looking around ,you would think you are in the middle of now where surrounded by apple orchards and fields of rape seed in full bloom.

Having Europe on your door step, the lovely country towns that have not changed to much,there is a classic car show being held near by and it is being held where the darling Buds of May were filmed, was thinking of taking my TR5 which I have owned for 32 years and brought it back with me .

I love the history that England has, every where ever you turn you are looking back in time at one place or another. I absolutely love the long summer evening that we have in the summer.

 

what I am trying to say is that I am so glad to have retuned home and it feels to me that is where I belong .

 

To all those wanting to return ,I hope you find the happiness of being home that I have found.

 

chris

[Perthbum]

One of our directors is like that. He said to me "we've given the poms a good battering" at the end of the ashes series. I said mate, you're from Wolverhampton! Even the aussies at work to be fair said they had no respect for him. Tosser...

:biglaugh:....dont you just love them....a black country accent with a twinge of aussie is so funny...:cute:

[Harpodom]

Oh I can relate to this.....the instant change to being an Australian as soon as some Brits arrive! It's almost as if they are trying to find a short cut to making friends with Aussies by trying to be one. the scary thing is that it works. But it also works to be yourself and allow Australians to like you for who you are rather than who you are pretending to be.

 

i remember this one woman I worked with. She was Scottish, from a beautiful part. She had arrived in Melbourne precisely 2 weeks before us....14 short days. And she spoke to me as if she were the oracle "well, of course, we've been here longer than you" she would state. She had an incongruent frown that went along with her protestations that she was having the time of her life. She used the words: Avro, Barbie, Footy, Ambo, E.D, rocked up, Snags, etc within 2 weeks of getting to Australia (and probably even before that)!!

 

It REALLY bothered me! But now it just seems odd!

I think we've all met someone like your Scotch friend Blobby! Christ, how annoying are they?

 

TBH you meet people like that in any unfamiliar scenario where the more honest of us just STFU and stop faking!

[RubyLee]

I'm feeling really homesick at the moment so I have been making a list of pro's and con's, saw your post and wanted to add mine!

 

Awful Awful driving, rude, aggressive amber gamblers who are always swerving in and out of your breaking distance space, its basically bad drivers teaching more people to become bad drivers....where's the driving schools?? Foot on the floor in their automatics.

 

Crap TV no end of part one sometimes not sure whether I am watching the programme or the ad and the longer you get into watching the more the adverts keep flowing.

 

Supermarkets no buy me and eat me like M&S its all buy me and what shall I do with me its like the butcher the baker the candlestick maker shopping.

 

Traffic - horrendous in Sydney a 20 minute trip can take over an hour

 

Checks upon checks for everything with no common sense prevailing!!! Visas a nightmare and criminal checks how come they take up to 15 days if your name matches the data must have come from out of the ark.

 

Christmas - what christmas and so much for it being on the beach in Sydney its rained the last 2 years.

 

Cost of living sky high, buying a house forget it unless you are Chinese!

 

Taxes, Medical expenses, dentists all big money!!!

 

Pro's - lovely weather, BBQ's, swimming in the sea.

 

Think I had better go home just wanted to try something different and live the dream!!!! UK is not all bad but had to go away to appreciate it.

[Guest]

Perth:

 

Women dressed like hookers for work in the city but wearing gym kit all weekend

Rubbish beer and no decent pubs

Expensive for what you get

mind set of locals from Perth - no idea on anything

Lack of things to do other than sport (lack of culture)

no customer service - infact rude!!

High rates of tax

no where to go - remote city and down south is boring after the 5 th time lol

 

Oz in general

 

The accent grates after a while but only a little

very insular due to being miles from anywhere else - not as bad as NZ though

no Ozone - skin cancer

never spend Xmas in UK anyway

 

I will miss:

 

Bogans

V8 Utes

decent burger bars - grilled etc

basically i like both countries and would love to do 6 months here then 6 in the UK

[Harpodom]

Perth:

 

Women dressed like hookers for work in the city but wearing gym kit all weekend

 

 

A plus for me, so long as gym kit = Lycra

[paul1977]

Perth:

 

Women dressed like hookers for work in the city but wearing gym kit all weekend

Rubbish beer and no decent pubs

Expensive for what you get

mind set of locals from Perth - no idea on anything

Lack of things to do other than sport (lack of culture)

no customer service - infact rude!!

High rates of tax

no where to go - remote city and down south is boring after the 5 th time lol

 

Oz in general

 

The accent grates after a while but only a little

very insular due to being miles from anywhere else - not as bad as NZ though

no Ozone - skin cancer

never spend Xmas in UK anyway

 

I will miss:

 

Bogans

V8 Utes

decent burger bars - grilled etc

basically i like both countries and would love to do 6 months here then 6 in the UK

Grilled.. Really good food

[mkeeno]

The cost.

 

5 weeks right this second and I'll be taking off from Dubai on my final flight towards Manchester. I've been here for 8 years and can't hack the financial strain anymore. I may get a shock when I'm living and earning in the UK, but surely it's got to be easier to live than it is here.

 

Only recently the Brisbane City Council extended parking meters from 7pm to 10pm, the worst of it is the spin they put out. 'Brisbane City Council is providing more opportunity for people to find a car park on weekends and evenings by extending metered hours for on-street parking.'

 

There has to come a time when Aussies will stand up and say enough is enough, the lower and working class is out priced in this country.

[Perthbum]

The cost.

 

5 weeks right this second and I'll be taking off from Dubai on my final flight towards Manchester. I've been here for 8 years and can't hack the financial strain anymore. I may get a shock when I'm living and earning in the UK, but surely it's got to be easier to live than it is here.

 

Only recently the Brisbane City Council extended parking meters from 7pm to 10pm, the worst of it is the spin they put out. 'Brisbane City Council is providing more opportunity for people to find a car park on weekends and evenings by extending metered hours for on-street parking.'

 

There has to come a time when Aussies will stand up and say enough is enough, the lower and working class is out priced in this country.

it is becoming one of the rip-off countries of the world, people moan about the UK but compared to oz it is paradise.

[wakeboard1980]

it is becoming one of the rip-off countries of the world, people moan about the UK but compared to oz it is paradise.

And you know this how?

[Perthbum]

And you know this how?

prices....no competition....plus reports.

 

Australia has become one of the most expensive countries in the world and consumers largely have the Government to thank, new research suggests.

Dr Oliver Marc Hartwich from the Centre for Independent Studies today released a report titled Price Drivers: Five Case Studies in How Government is Making Australia Unaffordable.

Bananas, books, cars, housing and retail are all areas where Australians are paying too much, according to Dr Hartwich.

"We are always told we are living in this miracle economy, the envy of the world, the one economy that survived the GFC, and it's all true, but ordinary consumers do not feel they are living in this blessed economy - they actually feel ripped off and overcharged," Dr Hartwich said.

In the case of bananas, the report notes that even before Cyclone Yasi, we were paying $2.30 per kilo, which is more expensive than in New Zealand, the UK, France and the US.

"Australians regularly pay more for their bananas compared to say a country like Germany where they don't even grow bananas," Dr Hartwich said.

He says given bananas are Australia's top-selling fruit and each person consumes about 13 kilograms of bananas a year, they should be allowed to be imported from the Philippines - even if only into non-banana growing states.

"The Australian banana industry is not actually that big. They make it sound like a really important part of the Australian economy when in fact it isn't," he said.

"It's an industry that is really focused in a few locations and employs a few thousand people, not tens of thousands, but then basically all the rest of the country - the other 22 million people - have to pay the price for that.

"I'm not against Australian farmers or against buying Australian bananas, but you need to have the choice.

"In the end you have to consider the needs of lower-income Australians. Why do they have to pay for farmers that are probably richer than them?"

[h=2]Importing cars[/h]On the car industry, Dr Hartwich says vehicles should also be allowed to be imported.

The report says the cost of cars in Australia and abroad often escapes public scrutiny because the industry is heavily protected against foreign competition.

But it says the price difference between cars in Australia and abroad can be enormous.

"My favourite recommendation from the whole report is to make it possible to import used cars from other countries," Dr Hartwich said.

"That's something New Zealand does regularly. New Zealand has specialised agencies that make it possible to import used cars from Japan, so it gets extremely good deals on used cars.

"Why shouldn't we get the same deals?

We are always told we are living in this miracle economy, the envy of the world, the one economy that survived the GFC, and it's all true, but ordinary consumers do not feel that they are living in this blessed economy, they actually feel ripped off and overcharged.

 

Dr Oliver Marc Hartwich

"One example is a top-end-of-the-market Mercedes we found here for $360,000 and in Britain you could get the exact same car for $110,000.

"That's a bit extreme, but even family cars you can easily save $5,000 to $6,000, and I think for a lot of Australian families that would make a big difference."

[h=2]Housing affordability[/h]The report does acknowledge that some costs of living are influenced by external factors, but it says government policies and regulations play a far greater role in driving prices than people realise.

When it comes to housing affordability in Australia, Dr Hartwich says government is almost entirely to blame.

The report states the price of a small apartment in Sydney or Melbourne would be enough to buy a reasonably sized family home in Berlin, Houston or Barcelona.

It also says the first home owner grant has made housing less affordable for the majority of Australians.

Dr Hartwich says there is no excuse.

"When we're talking about the housing situation, I think I would probably blame most of it on the government because that really comes down to how many houses are there, how much land is there to be released for development," he said.

"It's quite simple to drive down house prices, especially in a country the size of Australia.

"We've got so much land we could theoretically develop so there should never be a housing shortage in Australia."

[h=2]Benefits[/h]The report also says Australian retail is in crisis. It finds shop rents and CBD parking are over-priced and far more expensive than they are overseas.

Three-hour parking in Sydney costs more than in London and New York, while the average price for a cinema ticket in Australia ($12.98) is more expensive than in New Zealand, Germany and France.

It also examines the cost of books in Australia and notes the seventh Harry Potter paperback costs $21.95 compared to $6.95 in Canada.

Dr Hartwich says the report's recommendations to lower the cost of living are quite practical and if implemented would save Australians a lot of money.

But he acknowledges there would be opposition.

Australia is certainly expensive at present, if you compare the cost of living here to the cost elsewhere adjusted by the exchange rate. But this primarily reflects the strength of the Australian dollar rather than government policies.

 

Dr John Quiggin

"Opposition would be fierce. Everybody who would lose would cry out loud. The big losers would be the established retail chains, farmers would resist it, the printing industry would resist it," he said.

"I would expect all of this opposition, but still, we are talking about special interest protection here and the vast majority of Australians would actually benefit from my changes.

"We would see a reduction in fruit and vegetable prices by about a third or a half, we would probably cut between $5,000 and 10,000 off the ordinary family car.

"If we managed to reduce house prices to their traditional levels, that would cut about $150,000 to $350,000 off your next house.

"Paying for books - you wouldn't have to get them from Amazon, you could just buy them form Dymocks and they would be the same price.

"Bananas, DVDs, whatever you want - it would come down significantly in price and would make an enormous difference for Australian consumers."

[h=2]Blind spots[/h]When Dr Hartwich suspected his report would attract opposition, he was right.

Dr John Quiggin from the University of Queensland's School of Economics says while Australia is certainly expensive at present, this primarily reflects the strength of the Australian dollar rather than government policies.

"Some government policies raise costs, but the selection of examples in this report suggests this is pretty marginal," he said.

"Only a minority of consumers are affected by the luxury car tax and banana prices are high only in the aftermath of a cyclone. The price has already fallen back below $2 a kilo."

He says Dr Hartwich does have a case in relation to house prices, but that the political difficulties of fixing this are immense.

"The proposals in the paper are worthwhile but reveal the author's own ideological blind spots and policy taboos," Dr Quiggin said.

"A sensible housing policy would start by removing the exemption of owner-occupied property from land tax, but the authors aren't willing to say this because it would raise objections from their political allies.

"This illustrates the difficulty of reform in this area."

[wakeboard1980]

prices....no competition....plus reports.

 

Australia has become one of the most expensive countries in the world and consumers largely have the Government to thank, new research suggests.

Dr Oliver Marc Hartwich from the Centre for Independent Studies today released a report titled Price Drivers: Five Case Studies in How Government is Making Australia Unaffordable.

Bananas, books, cars, housing and retail are all areas where Australians are paying too much, according to Dr Hartwich.

"We are always told we are living in this miracle economy, the envy of the world, the one economy that survived the GFC, and it's all true, but ordinary consumers do not feel they are living in this blessed economy - they actually feel ripped off and overcharged," Dr Hartwich said.

In the case of bananas, the report notes that even before Cyclone Yasi, we were paying $2.30 per kilo, which is more expensive than in New Zealand, the UK, France and the US.

"Australians regularly pay more for their bananas compared to say a country like Germany where they don't even grow bananas," Dr Hartwich said.

He says given bananas are Australia's top-selling fruit and each person consumes about 13 kilograms of bananas a year, they should be allowed to be imported from the Philippines - even if only into non-banana growing states.

"The Australian banana industry is not actually that big. They make it sound like a really important part of the Australian economy when in fact it isn't," he said.

"It's an industry that is really focused in a few locations and employs a few thousand people, not tens of thousands, but then basically all the rest of the country - the other 22 million people - have to pay the price for that.

"I'm not against Australian farmers or against buying Australian bananas, but you need to have the choice.

"In the end you have to consider the needs of lower-income Australians. Why do they have to pay for farmers that are probably richer than them?"

Importing cars

 

On the car industry, Dr Hartwich says vehicles should also be allowed to be imported.

The report says the cost of cars in Australia and abroad often escapes public scrutiny because the industry is heavily protected against foreign competition.

But it says the price difference between cars in Australia and abroad can be enormous.

"My favourite recommendation from the whole report is to make it possible to import used cars from other countries," Dr Hartwich said.

"That's something New Zealand does regularly. New Zealand has specialised agencies that make it possible to import used cars from Japan, so it gets extremely good deals on used cars.

"Why shouldn't we get the same deals?

We are always told we are living in this miracle economy, the envy of the world, the one economy that survived the GFC, and it's all true, but ordinary consumers do not feel that they are living in this blessed economy, they actually feel ripped off and overcharged.

 

Dr Oliver Marc Hartwich

 

"One example is a top-end-of-the-market Mercedes we found here for $360,000 and in Britain you could get the exact same car for $110,000.

"That's a bit extreme, but even family cars you can easily save $5,000 to $6,000, and I think for a lot of Australian families that would make a big difference."

Housing affordability

 

The report does acknowledge that some costs of living are influenced by external factors, but it says government policies and regulations play a far greater role in driving prices than people realise.

When it comes to housing affordability in Australia, Dr Hartwich says government is almost entirely to blame.

The report states the price of a small apartment in Sydney or Melbourne would be enough to buy a reasonably sized family home in Berlin, Houston or Barcelona.

It also says the first home owner grant has made housing less affordable for the majority of Australians.

Dr Hartwich says there is no excuse.

"When we're talking about the housing situation, I think I would probably blame most of it on the government because that really comes down to how many houses are there, how much land is there to be released for development," he said.

"It's quite simple to drive down house prices, especially in a country the size of Australia.

"We've got so much land we could theoretically develop so there should never be a housing shortage in Australia."

Benefits

 

The report also says Australian retail is in crisis. It finds shop rents and CBD parking are over-priced and far more expensive than they are overseas.

Three-hour parking in Sydney costs more than in London and New York, while the average price for a cinema ticket in Australia ($12.98) is more expensive than in New Zealand, Germany and France.

It also examines the cost of books in Australia and notes the seventh Harry Potter paperback costs $21.95 compared to $6.95 in Canada.

Dr Hartwich says the report's recommendations to lower the cost of living are quite practical and if implemented would save Australians a lot of money.

But he acknowledges there would be opposition.

Australia is certainly expensive at present, if you compare the cost of living here to the cost elsewhere adjusted by the exchange rate. But this primarily reflects the strength of the Australian dollar rather than government policies.

 

Dr John Quiggin

 

"Opposition would be fierce. Everybody who would lose would cry out loud. The big losers would be the established retail chains, farmers would resist it, the printing industry would resist it," he said.

"I would expect all of this opposition, but still, we are talking about special interest protection here and the vast majority of Australians would actually benefit from my changes.

"We would see a reduction in fruit and vegetable prices by about a third or a half, we would probably cut between $5,000 and 10,000 off the ordinary family car.

"If we managed to reduce house prices to their traditional levels, that would cut about $150,000 to $350,000 off your next house.

"Paying for books - you wouldn't have to get them from Amazon, you could just buy them form Dymocks and they would be the same price.

"Bananas, DVDs, whatever you want - it would come down significantly in price and would make an enormous difference for Australian consumers."

Blind spots

 

When Dr Hartwich suspected his report would attract opposition, he was right.

Dr John Quiggin from the University of Queensland's School of Economics says while Australia is certainly expensive at present, this primarily reflects the strength of the Australian dollar rather than government policies.

"Some government policies raise costs, but the selection of examples in this report suggests this is pretty marginal," he said.

"Only a minority of consumers are affected by the luxury car tax and banana prices are high only in the aftermath of a cyclone. The price has already fallen back below $2 a kilo."

He says Dr Hartwich does have a case in relation to house prices, but that the political difficulties of fixing this are immense.

"The proposals in the paper are worthwhile but reveal the author's own ideological blind spots and policy taboos," Dr Quiggin said.

"A sensible housing policy would start by removing the exemption of owner-occupied property from land tax, but the authors aren't willing to say this because it would raise objections from their political allies.

"This illustrates the difficulty of reform in this area."

Well done, if you actually lived there you would know that yes it is expensive but a lot of things are relevant, and yes I know there will always be people struggling, before you play that card. Rip off? No not really, not any more than over here on certain things.

 

eta, one mans opinion really. I'm sure there are lots of things in Aus that are more expensive in other countries, all different countries as well I might add.

[Perthbum]

Well done, if you actually lived there you would know that yes it is expensive but a lot of things are relevant, and yes I know there will always be people struggling, before you play that card. Rip off? No not really, not any more than over here on certain things.

 

eta, one mans opinion really. I'm sure there are lots of things in Aus that are more expensive in other countries, all different countries as well I might add.

I think it is cities being isolated that fuels the problem, you need competition to bring prices down...look at aldi and lidl over here they are relatively newcomers but have brought the major players to book, people are paying a fair price for their goods because of competition, also the internet is a great place to buy these days.

[sueandave]

Yes totally agree, they used to call it the lucky country, Can't you arrive in the U.K and make it with a few quid?

[wakeboard1980]

I think it is cities being isolated that fuels the problem, you need competition to bring prices down...look at aldi and lidl over here they are relatively newcomers but have brought the major players to book, people are paying a fair price for their goods because of competition, also the internet is a great place to buy these days.

 

Aldi and lidl haven't helped so much as the gfc people are paying absolutely silly prices for things. Agree the Internet is great to buy some things but then that doesn't come without its own problems

[bunbury61]

Ohh, I don't know how I forgot this one (I know it sounds silly but it was actually quite a big factor for me), lack of sense of humour. It broke my spirit at times.

limited places to walk our dog. The beach got boring after a while....Endless adverts, bad enough but endless adverts about meat and sport... Not sure if there's a connection there???? Retro white dog poo. Don't see it here in the UK much...

P****d up ruddy faced Brits scoffing 'snags' (prob 90% hoof) and slagging off the UK at cliquey barby's

 

My rule no 1 , when I was there .....AVOID THE POMS .....always had a better time with the aussies , I knew where I stood ......no dramas

[bunbury61]

Yes totally agree, they used to call it the lucky country, Can't you arrive in the U.K and make it with a few quid?

 

well speaking from 20 yrs experience , yes you can make it here in the u.k , but its a damn sight harder ....and getting hard in either place now

[Guest Guest226914]

prices....no competition....plus reports.

 

Australia has become one of the most expensive countries in the world and consumers largely have the Government to thank, new research suggests.

Dr Oliver Marc Hartwich from the Centre for Independent Studies today released a report titled Price Drivers: Five Case Studies in How Government is Making Australia Unaffordable.

Bananas, books, cars, housing and retail are all areas where Australians are paying too much, according to Dr Hartwich.

"We are always told we are living in this miracle economy, the envy of the world, the one economy that survived the GFC, and it's all true, but ordinary consumers do not feel they are living in this blessed economy - they actually feel ripped off and overcharged," Dr Hartwich said.

In the case of bananas, the report notes that even before Cyclone Yasi, we were paying $2.30 per kilo, which is more expensive than in New Zealand, the UK, France and the US.

"Australians regularly pay more for their bananas compared to say a country like Germany where they don't even grow bananas," Dr Hartwich said.

He says given bananas are Australia's top-selling fruit and each person consumes about 13 kilograms of bananas a year, they should be allowed to be imported from the Philippines - even if only into non-banana growing states.

"The Australian banana industry is not actually that big. They make it sound like a really important part of the Australian economy when in fact it isn't," he said.

"It's an industry that is really focused in a few locations and employs a few thousand people, not tens of thousands, but then basically all the rest of the country - the other 22 million people - have to pay the price for that.

"I'm not against Australian farmers or against buying Australian bananas, but you need to have the choice.

"In the end you have to consider the needs of lower-income Australians. Why do they have to pay for farmers that are probably richer than them?"

Importing cars

 

On the car industry, Dr Hartwich says vehicles should also be allowed to be imported.

The report says the cost of cars in Australia and abroad often escapes public scrutiny because the industry is heavily protected against foreign competition.

But it says the price difference between cars in Australia and abroad can be enormous.

"My favourite recommendation from the whole report is to make it possible to import used cars from other countries," Dr Hartwich said.

"That's something New Zealand does regularly. New Zealand has specialised agencies that make it possible to import used cars from Japan, so it gets extremely good deals on used cars.

"Why shouldn't we get the same deals?

We are always told we are living in this miracle economy, the envy of the world, the one economy that survived the GFC, and it's all true, but ordinary consumers do not feel that they are living in this blessed economy, they actually feel ripped off and overcharged.

 

Dr Oliver Marc Hartwich

 

"One example is a top-end-of-the-market Mercedes we found here for $360,000 and in Britain you could get the exact same car for $110,000.

"That's a bit extreme, but even family cars you can easily save $5,000 to $6,000, and I think for a lot of Australian families that would make a big difference."

Housing affordability

 

The report does acknowledge that some costs of living are influenced by external factors, but it says government policies and regulations play a far greater role in driving prices than people realise.

When it comes to housing affordability in Australia, Dr Hartwich says government is almost entirely to blame.

The report states the price of a small apartment in Sydney or Melbourne would be enough to buy a reasonably sized family home in Berlin, Houston or Barcelona.

It also says the first home owner grant has made housing less affordable for the majority of Australians.

Dr Hartwich says there is no excuse.

"When we're talking about the housing situation, I think I would probably blame most of it on the government because that really comes down to how many houses are there, how much land is there to be released for development," he said.

"It's quite simple to drive down house prices, especially in a country the size of Australia.

"We've got so much land we could theoretically develop so there should never be a housing shortage in Australia."

Benefits

 

The report also says Australian retail is in crisis. It finds shop rents and CBD parking are over-priced and far more expensive than they are overseas.

Three-hour parking in Sydney costs more than in London and New York, while the average price for a cinema ticket in Australia ($12.98) is more expensive than in New Zealand, Germany and France.

It also examines the cost of books in Australia and notes the seventh Harry Potter paperback costs $21.95 compared to $6.95 in Canada.

Dr Hartwich says the report's recommendations to lower the cost of living are quite practical and if implemented would save Australians a lot of money.

But he acknowledges there would be opposition.

Australia is certainly expensive at present, if you compare the cost of living here to the cost elsewhere adjusted by the exchange rate. But this primarily reflects the strength of the Australian dollar rather than government policies.

 

Dr John Quiggin

 

"Opposition would be fierce. Everybody who would lose would cry out loud. The big losers would be the established retail chains, farmers would resist it, the printing industry would resist it," he said.

"I would expect all of this opposition, but still, we are talking about special interest protection here and the vast majority of Australians would actually benefit from my changes.

"We would see a reduction in fruit and vegetable prices by about a third or a half, we would probably cut between $5,000 and 10,000 off the ordinary family car.

"If we managed to reduce house prices to their traditional levels, that would cut about $150,000 to $350,000 off your next house.

"Paying for books - you wouldn't have to get them from Amazon, you could just buy them form Dymocks and they would be the same price.

"Bananas, DVDs, whatever you want - it would come down significantly in price and would make an enormous difference for Australian consumers."

Blind spots

 

When Dr Hartwich suspected his report would attract opposition, he was right.

Dr John Quiggin from the University of Queensland's School of Economics says while Australia is certainly expensive at present, this primarily reflects the strength of the Australian dollar rather than government policies.

"Some government policies raise costs, but the selection of examples in this report suggests this is pretty marginal," he said.

"Only a minority of consumers are affected by the luxury car tax and banana prices are high only in the aftermath of a cyclone. The price has already fallen back below $2 a kilo."

He says Dr Hartwich does have a case in relation to house prices, but that the political difficulties of fixing this are immense.

"The proposals in the paper are worthwhile but reveal the author's own ideological blind spots and policy taboos," Dr Quiggin said.

"A sensible housing policy would start by removing the exemption of owner-occupied property from land tax, but the authors aren't willing to say this because it would raise objections from their political allies.

"This illustrates the difficulty of reform in this area."

 

There can be all the reports in the world but my partner and I have a lot more money in oz. we managed to save for a house within a year after coming to oz with very little money. Yes prices are high but so too are our salaries and we have so much more disposable income at the end of every month. I know everyone's situation is different but I can't fault what oz has given to me. If Mercedes are too expensive over here, just don't buy one. If bananas are too expensive, choose an alternative fruit! If it is too expensive to park in the CBD, drive to a train station and get the train in.