New Zealand exodus ‘far from one-sided’

Press, 16 January 1988, Page 10

New Zealand exodus ‘far from one-sided’

PA Tauranga Reports that New Zealanders are fleeing the country in droves for a supposedly better life in Australia are unbalanced, says the manager of an international house removal firm. "They fail to acknowledge the large numbers of people coming into the country every week,” said Mr Brian Anderson, of Mount Maunganui. "The movement is far from one-sided. Over the country as a whole, our company is bringing in as many families each week as it shifts overseas. “And that includes a number of New Zealan-

ders who have found things are not quite so rosy in Australia as they thought and are coming home again.”

Mr Anderson said there had even been some cases where people had sold up in the Bay of Plenty to shift to Australia, and been back before their household possessions even reached the other side of the Tasman.

“There is no denying quite a number of people are making the shift to Australia,” he said. “We are probably packing up about nine households a week at the moment, and there are bookings through till the end of March.

“But, in my experience, this is not due to any special disgruntlement with New Zealand. The majority are older people who already have family in Australia.

"People talk to us about their motives for leaving, and there are very few who knock this country. “I can also tell you there are quite a few who are back here surprisingly quickly after learning Australia is far from perfect.”

Mr Anderson said that this could be a an expensive experience.

A door-to-door shift for the contents of an average four-bedroom home from

Tauranga to Brisbane cost about $BOOO. Some people took only a few possessions; others took everything. "We have handled jobs ranging in price from $5OO to $17,000 in recent months,” he said. “But, in the other direction, this week we have families moving permanently to New Zealand from Singapore, the Middle East and Canada, as well as several from Australia. Many of those are Kiwis coming home.” “It gives a badly distorted picture if you do not acknowledge that there are as many coming in as are leaving,” Mr Anderson said.