But surely it would cost to much to chase someone all the way in Australia?

I personally think that going abroad and migrating should be a clean slate... without having to look over your shoulder.

But I read somewhere the reason interest rates in the UK are so high... is partly because of the people that escape there debt and run away! Or go Bankrupt.

I think your friend is probably an excellent lawyer but a rubbish debt expert

Debt does not follow you from country to country and the Commonwealth link plays no part in forging those sort of ties. If you run up all the debt you can in the UK and move to Australia it will not effect your Australian credit rating (which is of course zero since you have just moved here!).

As to the actual chasing of those debts - people do chase them and its a matter of economic balance if it is worth tracing you to Australia and taking an international legal case against you which is very hard to enforce (near impossible actually). Tracing people internationally is equally very hard to do. There is no linking of any database from the UK to Australia. However, if one debt agency manage to get your forwarding address then that will appear on many of the credit and trace databases for the rest of your creditors to see as they do share information. Getting that information as to where you have gone in the first place is the hard part and near impossible if you emmigrate and dont leave any address.

As to the morals and ethics of skipping with debt owed - thats very much a personal and emotive subject. Interestingly I got a letter from NTL the other day threatening me with dire legal action for a sum outstanding with them from over a year ago of £8. No - Im not going to pay it - naughty eh ?

OH MY GOSH £8.00 THATS TERRIBLE lol
Thames Water tried to bill my Mum well after she had left the UK.....
I called them and explained she had gone to Australia,and are they sure their facts are correct.
They soon double and triple checked. And apologised for any confusion caused.

The bill was for I think around £200.00, when I said she had moved to Australia, they said well it was their mistake but they couldn't chase her in Aus anyway!

I guess it depends how much in debt some people are!

If its like £10.000 or over surely they would chase... or would it cost £10.000 to find the people running?

I don't know what this world is coming too