What Aussies love, and fear, about life Down Under
Australians overwhelmingly agree our nation is a great place to be but many worry that won’t be the case in a decade. See what we love most about life Down Under — and what scares us about the future.
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Australians overwhelmingly believe our country is a great place to live.
Access to beautiful beaches, parks and other open spaces has earned the biggest tick of appreciation.
Our general lifestyle and the friendliness of people also make our nation special, a report has found.
Aussies also highly value our relative safety from crime and terrorism.
But we are least impressed with the amount of taxes, lengthy travel times to work, living costs and immigration policies.
The Life in the “Lucky Country” research, based on a survey of 2000 adults late last year, reveals nine in 10 people agree our nation is a great place to reside.
Report author Dean Pearson, from National Australia Bank’s behavioural and industry economics team, says that belief holds true irrespective of gender or income level.
“What we found is Australians don’t take our way of life for granted and that we are broadly united in the types of things that we appreciate.
“The positives outweigh the negatives.”
But only half think Australia will still be a great place to live in a decade’s time.
“With the exceptions of entertainment, public transport and telecommunications, all other aspects of liveability are expected to deteriorate,” Mr Pearson said.
“Concerns about the cost of living, the environment, jobs, safety, road congestion and housing affordability are top of mind.”
Mr Pearson said worries about wages not rising fast enough to cover price rises for essentials such as medical services, electricity and education could be shaping how people view the future.
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In the past year, people have also become more downbeat about the strength of the economy and the quality of education and healthcare.
Most Australians think a clear and shared vision for where the nation is headed is lacking. Six in 10 feel they do not have a voice in helping to shape the country’s future.
“This suggests a need for more public debate around the future direction of our country and what matters most to people,” Mr Pearson said.