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Healthcare. This is of a way higher standard here in Australia and there are some very well equipped hospitals around.
Private cover is subsidised and there is still some tax rebate left on your insurance contributions. One doesn't have to declare existing conditions when taking out a policy as they are automatically covered. AFAIK you can't be refused cover either. GP visits can be free if you find a doctor that bulk bills and children are usually free anyway if they're under 16. Dependent children are included on your policy until they're in their early 20s. Of course the system is changing after Abbott's budget but I think the user pays principle is a sound one and I'm assuming the safety net threshold will still be there - once you reach it you don't have to pay any more. I'm not sure what this is now but it used to be around $400/$500.
Lets try to focus on the following differences pertaining to these subjects:
Taxation
Immigration
Cost of Living (homes, utilities, cars/public trans, groceries, misc.)
Politics
Healthcare
Immigration - both countries have a similar percentage of immigrants, depending where you read its close to 26% in Aus and 24% in NZ.
Cost of living - NZ cheaper outside of Auckland however Aus wages higher, edge to Australia when all weighed, however give it 5-10 years and I am not sure if this will still stand.
Politics - Both countries have similar roots however Australia has a State Federal System, NZ has MMP (Mixed-member proportional representation). Have to say Australian politics are in a utter mess ATM, you would see more honest government if the Mafia ran Aus.
Taxation - Roughly equivalent, NZ has higher GST , Australia has a new "Surcharge" every time you blow you nose.
Healthcare- The public Healthcare systems are roughly equivalent in both countries however the private system is significantly better in Australia and a far higher percentage of Australians use it.
I've been watching "Bogan Hunters" via the internet here in the States so I want to know how to tell NZ and AU Bogans apart.
(I've also enjoyed "The Agony of life/xmas/modern manners______" series and am starting to watch the earlier Agony Aunts/Uncles series.)
Lets try to focus on the following differences pertaining to these subjects:
Taxation
Immigration
Cost of Living (homes, utilities, cars/public trans, groceries, misc.)
Politics
Healthcare
Politics. I suppose the biggest difference here is that Australia has Federal and State Parliaments and the states tend to have more clout. Also there's checks and balances from having an upper house to the national parliament which makes Australia a lot more democratic IMO. Citizens are required by law to vote in Australia, whereas people can dip out of that in NZ and voter turnout has been in decline since the German system of MMP was introduced. Under MMP a MP can be voted out of her seat by her electorate but still get in as a list MP if she's high enough.
Would it be fair to say that the treatment (both current and historical) of indigenous peoples is one of the most obvious differences between Australia and NZ?
Would it be fair to say that the treatment (both current and historical) of indigenous peoples is one of the most obvious differences between Australia and NZ?
Yes and no - certainly the two interpret their own (and the others's) histories in that regard in a very different way. For example, a lot of Aussies view the Treaty of Waitangi in a much more crtical and questioning way than do their Kiwi counterparts. For example a former co-worker viewed that treaty as no different in intent and outcomes than the Indian treaties in the US in the 1800s and couldn't understand why Kiwis would be proud of it.
Also NZ is a small country, so Maori had little option but to intergrate with white society, whereas in Australia even today there are many indiginous communities living traditional and semi traditional lifestyles independent of mainstream culture - and doing that by choice.
Its interesting that Maori make up a pretty large proportion of Kiwis living in Australia.
Overall, I think are there a lot of cmplex issues in both countries.
Last edited by Richard1098; 10-09-2014 at 03:26 PM..
Would it be fair to say that the treatment (both current and historical) of indigenous peoples is one of the most obvious differences between Australia and NZ?
NZ's treatment of the Maori was a lot "better" with of course the Treaty of Waitangi and full political rights for well over 100 years opposed to no treaty and full rights in Aus only in the early 1970's, aussies have a bit of a sore spot when Kiwis take a superiority position over this.
That said the NZ story is not exactly some kind of Utopia history either, Maori have all the traits of similar indigenous people, higher crime rates, with lower education and poorer health than average.
What really is a Maori, seen many people claiming to be that look more pale than me , maybe only 1/16, but its enough to claim ancestor and identify as a Maori, which to me is cherry picking ones ancestry, its not really who they are.
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, maybe only 1/16, but its enough to claim ancestor and identify as a Maori, which to me is cherry picking ones ancestry, its not really who they are.
