With New Zealand on the cusp of the recession Australia is likely to avoid, there are the makings of the return of the perfect storm when a more vibrant Australian economy, its worker shortages and higher wages sucked up New Zealanders at record rates.
At its peak, well over 50,000 Kiwis a year were moving to Australia. They came, braving Australia's quite brutal efforts to stem the flow, such as its 2001 decision that Kiwis be denied access to a range of government welfare measures - including unemployment and sickness benefits and citizenship pathways being blocked for many Kiwis.
That all changed late last month when Australia, on the eve of a visit by the New Zealand Prime Minister, announced that all Kiwis, from July, will be able to become citizens once they've lived in Australia for four years. They will get the same welfare benefits as Australians.
This story is from the May 06 - 12 2023 edition of New Zealand Listener.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the May 06 - 12 2023 edition of New Zealand Listener.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
A big noise
Scott Kara pays tribute to alternative rock figurehead Steve Albini.
Fiddling on the roof
After the doco recut by Peter Jackson, the original Let It Be returns as odd as ever.
Get with the pilgrim
Australian film-maker Bill Bennett thought turning his Camino de Santiago experience into a movie would be a good walk ruined. But he did it anyway.
The real queen of Bridgerton
Regency women would have a ball if they were transported from 'the Ton' to the present day, author Julia Quinn says.
Setting boundaries
A giant in the philosophy of gender seems unwilling to engage with alternative points of view or the reality of biological sex.
Affair of the heart
Miranda July's second novel, a wild ride through an unconventional relationship, is not for the faint-hearted.
A continent of no laws
A Kiwi investigative journalist has spent 21 years trying to get to the bottom of what many believe is the suspicious death of an Australian scientist in Antarctica.
I'm Jo Peck again
Four weeks after her 60th birthday, Jo Peck's husband of 25 years told her he was seeing someone else. In a new book, she details how shock and disbelief made way for happiness and contentment.
A mayor for everyone
The Far North's first Māori mayor is one of an emerging political generation bringing equity to the forefront. But a government reversal on Māori wards looms as a stumbling block.
We need to talk about dying
Whether by choice or weight of numbers, more of us will die at home in future. And with pressure to ease assisted dying restrictions, the gaps in community-based care need fixing - before time runs out.
