Tag: United Kingdom

OPINION & ANALYSIS: Today the Commonwealth exists as an organisation in search of a rationale. When this coalition of whimsy meets a hard policy issue, its solidarity falls victim to its diversity, while its breadth of membership can’t deliver real weight and gravitas in the present day.

Had I finally found where I was meant to exist in the world? Did I belong in the UK more than I belong in Australia?

When you receive your first UK visa or permit, your Indefinite Leave to Remain application may seem far in the future. However, the preparation for your Indefinite Leave to Remain should start from your first arrival in the UK.

Home is beckoning and you are ready to pack up and leave London. Before you do, think about all the things you're going to miss about the city and make the most of the time you have left. Or if you are long gone, here's some reminiscing.

OPINION & ANALYSIS: Despite the added complication of Brexit negotiations and the nostalgic attachment to past glory, the prospect of Commonwealth becoming Empire 2.0 remains, as The Economist suggested, “cobblers”.

To assist Tier 2 Visa holders to ensure that they fulfil the requirements of the Minimum Pay Threshold, we have answered some of the concerns and questions of readers on the topic.

OPINION & ANALYSIS: Public housing might get some people off the streets, but it also puts many people permanently onto the backs of the taxpayer. Albeit well-intentioned, it is a poor substitute for a vibrant private housing market.

OPINION & ANALYSIS: Britain’s media have made much of the “Aussie flu” sweeping across the northern hemisphere, but is there evidence the land Down Under is to blame?

When you make the big jump for a stint in the UK, there's a lot in your life that is going to change and you will need to adjust in a major way. Here's some top advice on how, from someone who has taken the leap.

OPINION & ANALYSIS: This is the message to take into 2018: whatever side one might be on the Brexit divide, let’s all admit the complexities, and demand that politicians do the same.

Antipodeans were foremost among more than 75,000 New Years' revellers as Edinburgh's Hogmanay Festival celebrated its 25 year milestone in style. "I've never experienced anything like it!"

SPECIAL FEATURE: Based at Faslane are Britain’s nuclear armed Trident submarines while at nearby Coulport a mind boggling 220 nuclear weapons are stored inside a mountain. Protesters have been keeping watch for 35 years and counting.

LitePay International Payments offers a secure and safe way to transfer money from Australia to family and friends in the UK with a low transaction fee and competitive FX rate.

With fireworks set to explode around Britain, Paul Bleakley explores the magic and meaning of Guy Fawkes and Bonfire Night for the uninitiated Aussie and wonders what became of our own fabled Cracker Night.

UK Visa rules can often be very complicated, and oftentimes things are not as straightforward as they seem.

OPINION & ANALYSIS: As Tony Abbott accepts another pat on the back from a roomful of climate deniers in London, we may wonder how long business interests in Australia will tolerate his wrecking, undermining and sniping.

OPINION & ANALYSIS: In the short term, this further evasion of the Brexit issues means the ship of state can sail on, with May at the helm. But we should all be concerned about such weak leadership and its potential consequences.

THE EXPAT MIND: If you have come to London to develop your career and establish a new life, making progress socially or professionally can be tough at first. Living here is rarely boring, though.

COMEDY: Are you guys serious? Pennies and phone boxes - and you call us backwards?

Homelessness in England has grown massively, according to the National Audit Office.

What Aussies in London really like are also the things they’re too ashamed to admit to friends and family back home, or things they just won't get.. like Primark, Jeremy Kyle and Snakebites.

This can be a complicated area and landlords are often surprised at the expenditure that can and cannot be claimed.

Monsters, castles, drinking, horseback riding and gun firing: a trip to Scotland is like entering an adult fantasy world set against the most stunningly beautiful backdrop.

Thinking of moving to the UK? Is it best to live where other expat Australians have gone before or would you prefer to trailblaze further afield and leave old London town behind? Find some answers, here...

You think you've been given a hard time at Heathrow immigration? Not as hard (we hope) as these famous people who were at some point, or maybe even still are, not allowed into the UK.

OPINION & ANALYSIS: What a funny chap, he is; although, it must be said, his mastery of the Australian vernacular leaves something to be desired.

The newly amended UK Family Migration rules should be a positive change for families and spouses.

A weekend in the stunning city of Cambridge is easy, and you can even stay on campus.

Don’t remember what happened last night, or the night before? Or the night before that? Drinking in London is a nightly affair rather than a weekend pastime, which makes attempts to sober up even more difficult.

Finding a room, flat or house to rent in London is mayhem. It doesn't matter who you are, what you offer, or how much you are willing to pay, the entire process sucks.

KRIS GRIFFITHS explores Norfolk's stately English manor Congham Hall and the Queen’s own Sandringham House.

A push is being mounted from within the Liberal Party to get former prime minister Tony Abbott to take the job of High Commissioner to the UK to put an end to his undermining of Malcolm Turnbull.

Having witnessed it happen to many others before me, I decided to prepare well in advance for my return to Australia. But you get lost in the London life and suddenly months become weeks and the last-minute panic sets in.

Bunnings halted the planned closure of several Homebase stores a year ago, and is investing 500 million pounds to convert the entire Homebase estate to the Bunnings name and format in three years.

This remote, far northern Scottish island is home to a diverse range of flora, fauna and wildlife, and for a short while it's a cool summer escape for our intrepid Aussie journeyman.

We have answered some of the most Frequently Asked Questions we receive on the Tier 1 Graduate Entrepreneur route to live and work in the UK. We hope to get the word out on this one!

THE EXPAT MIND: If you fall in love with someone from overseas and the relationship becomes serious, it may create a real dilemma about your future. Why and what should you do about it?

The fourth UK terror attack, and the third in London, in just the a few months; this time directed against Muslims.

THE EXPAT MIND: Do Aussies who venture overseas to live do so because they don't feel entirely at home in Australia. Are they are looking for something or somewhere different - a place where they feel that they might actually belong?

A clever marketing concept, the 'Sculpture Triangle' is also the perfect excuse to head up north to visit the UK's largest county on a weekend break with a cultural bent.

OPINION & ANALYSIS: Not only must Australia's leaders manage competing ideologies in their parties and span diverging nations, they must also respond to a volatile electorate that is decidedly “anti-politics”.

"There's a stark gap between what businesses want and expect from our post-Brexit immigration system and what the government has pledged to deliver," says analyst.

OPINION & ANALYSIS: Jeremy Corbyn's Labour Party make unexpected gains across the country, while Conservative prime minister Theresa May hangs on to Number 10 by a thread after a night of surprises and a few red faces in dear old Blighty.

OPINION & ANALYSIS: The volatility in recent voting behaviour means that this election is still more unpredictable than in the good old days of stable allegiances, values and attitudes.

Worst fears confirmed by the mother of the Aussie au pair who had been missing following Saturday's terror attack. "This is the last thing that anybody expects to happen to their children in London," says prime minister.

The impromptu election was expected to be a simple win for Theresa May and the Conservatives, but nothing has gone to plan. The effect on the pound could be substantive, with volatility correlating to recent polling results and sensational international politics.

It has been confirmed that one of the fatalities in the London Bridge terror attack was Australian Kirsty Boden who in running to the aid of others was herself murdered.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says there are "very real concerns" for two of the four Aussies known to have been among those directly affected by Saturday's terrorist attack in London.

Do you need to know how you can ensure a smooth application for a new visa to live and work in the United Kingdom?

OPINION & ANALYSIS: The weird and wonderful concept of the Anglosphere is gaining a surprising salience in public debates as Britain faces up to its post-Brexit, post-Europe future.