Don't worry it's far worse in Leicester!

Sorry - only joking, can't believe no one beat me to it!

Sounds a pain in the arse. Problem with young kids going around being t*ats is that the law in the UK won't doing anything because of their age and youth detention centres are like holiday camps (at least that's the view here in the UK).

Should bring back the cane!

Rob

This has got me thinking and the police really aint that good, I cant comment on the Police in the UK as I never really had to deal with them.

As far as the hoons cars being confiscated, I read in the paper the other day that Geraldton has confiscated more cars than any other place in WA, so your initial feeling is that the police must be pretty good round here, but then with more thinking about things that have happened to me personally these are the stats

I have called the police 11 times, 9 due to Aboriginal children/young adults coming onto my property, freely walking into the backpackers and having a good look around, they go through the comunial freezer and fridge try all the doors trying to get in and one stole my husbands wallet (this was not long after we got here before we realized how security concious we had to be), If you ask them to leave they just shout abuse to you and as Simone says it is bloody scary. the other 2 times I have had to call the police have been due to white people doing stupid things, one stole a load of stuff and stored it here in his room and people came looking for him and the other was 4 boys from Perth who smoked in the room setting off the fire alarms which are monitored costing me a fortune and then decided to rip the fire alarm and all the no smoking signs off the walls costing me even more.

The only time I have been asked by the police to make a statement is for the 2 crimes commited by white people, Makes you wonder doesn't it

Kala

And birching, public hanging, cutting off hands . . seriously, a strong deterant and good teaching of right and wrong is needed everywhere.

The problem is as I see it from the UK perspective (and Oz) is the "under classes" are breeding the next generation, without morals, standards, etc. Those more positive role models in society tend to be working too hard to survive and sometimes forfeit the ability to have a family.

This was also seen in Oz too, girls under 16 pushing prams, never worked a day in their lives (apart from opening their legs - sorry to be strong but this is my biggest irritation at the moment), will never work or bring much value to the planet, getting paid to do it. I always said to my husband instead of me working since I was 13 and trying to educate myself, I should have had 3 kids to 3 different blokes before I was 16 - set up for life!!!!!

Sorry need to cool my blood

M

Couldn't agree with you more Merlot, -and I'm 24 years old. Kid's and teens often scare the pant's off me these days, and have no respect/manners towards anybody. I guess if they have no respect for the police or the system, then they really quite powerful. Something will have to break at some point, it's just a shame it's being allowed to develop this far.

jamie

Know the feeling.

For those in Australia:
How widespread is the problem? Is crime so serious that it affects quality of life?
Does it make you wish you hadn't moved to Australia?

If the police breaking up a party makes the news, then it suggests that it must be 'news' i.e. not that common, but from some of the stories I wonder what the situation is really like...

The more I read, the more I'm convinced that our approach to Australia as a 2 year working holiday (and keeping the house in the UK) is a wise idea!!!!

The wider issue here is again the size of the gamble that migrants take.
I find it incredibly difficult and immensely stressful trying to pick through the whole scenario of life in Australia - and I've travelled extensively through the country.

Are some posters really the realist, critical friend you need or are they getting off on scaremongering? Part of me questions the motives of people who spend time telling of the horrors of the country but clearly don't seem to think that it's so bad that they should leave. And yet part of me thinks they could just be doing me the biggest favour of a lifetime!!

So what to do - I have booked the tickets but not yet paid. We've been planning the move for 18 months. I love (or thought I did love) Australia. But I wake up at 3 in the morning worrying that a) I'll be poorer than Bob Cratchitt (thanks posters on the '$80K minimum needed' thread) b) my power will trip out at various times when I'm least expecting it. c) It's a 'bland, arrogant expensive country' d) cars are so expensive that I'll be driving around in one of those disabled 3 wheelers from the 60s and e) I'll be lucky to survive the first night and even if I do my family will be in mortal danger for evermore.

I've lived abroad for 5 years and travelled througout the world but I don't think I've ever come so close to abandoning a whole plan!
But therein lies the other facet - what happens if I jack it all in and stay in the UK (which I think (contrary to what appears to be the prevailing thought) is a lot better place than it was 6 years ago) and then 20 years down the line I look back with what may be immense regret.

Come on - payment for tickets is due in 4 days - give some advice!!!!

My advice,

Do it. Every percieves things differently and you should never make a decision based on what OTHER people have felt. It's YOUR perception that matters and only YOU can decided when you are there if it's for you. Give it a go.

If it makes you feel any better, I'll be arriving with the shirt on my back and a maximum of £5K in the bank. Not a lot, but it'll work out fine...

Carpe Diem, -sieze the day.

Have to say that having worked in the Benefits Agency dealing with income support claims - there are some very genuine cases out there, who we were unable to help due to the rulings on excess income (i.e you could have an older person who had worked all their lives and saved a bit of money for their funeral etc)then you had people who had never worked and had 5 kids to different fathers and would phone up because their giro was late moaning that they didn`t have money to buy the kids nappies (but still managed to find money for fags). As soon as the youngest child turned 16 you would write to them telling them they had to sign on for jobseekers and pretty much without fail a couple of weeks later they would have a sicknote from the Doc saying they couldn`t work due to stress/ depression and could they please claim incapacity benefit!!!! The sad thing is that we would see their change in circumstances such as new babies being born and you knew that 16 years down the line this would be the next generation of claimant. The whole system stinks and you have generations who don`t know how to cook unless it`s out of a packet and aren`t taught proper parenting skills by example.

Firstly nobody is scaremongering, its just a few brave souls have come up with some reality stories lately, I think the general feel behind the scenes of the forum is 'You cant post that it would upset people', or people dont want a verbal attack so they keep quiet. All you have to bear in mind is a lot of the same stuff goes on here, and why wouldnt it, its a western society, with all its problems and excesses. Its not a case of if a party makes it to the papers theres not much crime then, usually those parties are raided by about a 1000 bored kids, a bit more to it than teaparty makes papers.

Keep it in perspective, its just like the UK, it goes on, sometimes you are in the wrong place at the wrong time and see it. I dont really believe all the people who escape the UK due to its horrors of the daily mail have actually been affected by them, doesnt mean they havent seen it tho at times.

As for the financial posts, a picture does seem to be forming of many people on incomes around $600/700 after tax, but that is what the average wage is after tax, but with a family of kids I think the average wage earner would get some hefty tax refunds or family payments to help out.

As for expensive, if I lived on those wages I would find things very expensive, most people we know both work, like anywhere else really. You cant get these points across tho, people in the UK have a currency worth 2/3 times ours, it will always look like australias cheap to them. Think how many times you hear petrol is cheap, now halve your income, double your engine, and drive 10 times further, see if its cheap then

You say you travelled, when you went to those places didnt they have the same problems ? everywhere we have ever been has had some problems, the only confusing thing is why so many people think australia was ever any different.

If you cancel travel to a place because it has a few problems, then you would never go anywhere ever again! Dont worry about it.

Yer a little devil G ...fancy saying a thig like that. I live just outside Manchester.Why only last night as the vicar was leaving for evensong, he turned to me and said, "Vinny will yer be lookin at that, somebody has left an envolope on my car" Parkin ticket thought I - but no....it contained £1000 donation to help the poor.
Just then two nuns came around the corner, helped by a group of youths who were carrying the clothes donated to help thos poor souls less off than most.
Then the alarm bell rang and I woke up!

Just as I posted my other reply Let me see....posts suggest that the most popular destination for Brits going to Oz is...Perth. Then...post suggests that there is nothing to do in Perth except drink.....

Damned immigrants comin and wreckin the country, bet they dont work and live on handouts, laze around all day or go out robbing and mugging doing drugs.

I remember when it used to be like that near us!

No

Those jobs are already taken by the locals.

G

Did you C&P that from the aussie newspapers, its exactly the same here, except the benefits are higher

Sorry if I was ranting it just pees me off that as both my hubby and I work, we had taken a concious decision to have 1 child and try to maintain a standard of living by both working and not having more kids. I`d go into work and get calls saying can I have my giro early I`m off to Spain next week!! They`d turn up in designer gear on their top of the range mobiles (maybe they are just more careful with their money ) I`m obviously doing something wrong.
The whole of society is turning to dog poo (runs screamimg off into the suset cackling madly!!) Oh how we laughed on the way to intensive care!!

Makes me feel glad l live in Victoria, the state with the lowest crime rate in OZ, apart from Tasmania.

According to the statistics the crime rate in OZ is roughly the same as the UK
perhaps a bit lower. You probably have around the same chance of being a victim of crime in OZ as in the UK. So crime is no reason not to immigrate to OZ. l have lived in OZ all my life 30 years and the only crime that has happened to me was getting my bike stolen. Alot has to do with the area you live in as in the UK, some have alot of crime some very little. Don't live in a rough suburb.
As for expensive cars , there are some really good quality second hand cars available for low prices, l recommend Toyota Camrys, reliable comfortable family sized cars, you can get second hand for a few thousand dollars.
Also the cost of petrol is lower in OZ then the UK.
If you loved OZ on your holiday you should enjoy living in the place, l would'nt not immigrate to OZ just because you have read a few negative posts on this forum.