One of the great ironies of going to work in Australia and the very reason most go — to experience somewhere far-off and exotic — is that the opposite reason draws them back. It seems at the end of the day there is no place like home.

Packham advised thinking a move to Australia through very carefully.

"It is 16,000 miles away — you are a long way from home," he says. "Quite often you are leaving family, friends and your whole infrastructure behind and starting again.

"If you like doing something new and entrepreneurial — it's for you, but you are picking up your life and career and moving to the other side of the planet," Packham says. "So often people end up coming home because they love the environment but realise their entire life is on the other side of the world."

So bear the cultural changes in mind, but remember: the total experience of working down under can far outweigh any downside.



uk vs australia



l Total population: UK 60.6m Australia 21.2m

l Unemployment rates: UK 5.4% Australia 4.3%

l Average weekly earnings: UK (m) £498 per week (f) £394 Australia (m) £440 and (f) £292

l Life expectancy: UK (m) 77 (f) 81 Australia (m) 79 (f) 83

l Minimum holiday entitlement: UK 24 days Australia 20 days

l Average retirement age: UK (m) 64 (f) 62 Australia (m) 60 (f) 58

l Highest recorded temperature: UK 36.5 °C, recorded at the RHS gardens at Wisley in Surrey, 2006 Australia 53.1°C, recorded at Cloncurry in Queensland, 1998

[m = male f = female]

Currency conversions correct at time of writing

Sources: Office for National Statistics, Australian Bureau of Statistics, the Met Office