00:00Former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and her family are relocating.
00:04She's been spotted house hunting with her family on Sydney's famous northern beaches.
00:08It seems this is more work-related than anything else.
00:11Since she resigned in 2023, she spent most of her time outside New Zealand.
00:16She was living in the US for quite a while.
00:18She wrote her memoirs and was travelling around the world promoting that.
00:21So she really made clear that she wanted to step away from political life in New Zealand.
00:25She didn't want to be involved in politics once she was gone.
00:28She was very, very popular.
00:30She was the second woman to give birth while in office.
00:34In her second term, things didn't go quite so well.
00:37Her leadership during COVID was questioned.
00:40And New Zealand started to feel a cost-of-living crisis.
00:43So there's really been an acceleration of departures from New Zealand in the past year.
00:48Sixty percent or so of those moved across the Tasman to Australia,
00:52where they're seen as having better job prospects, better pay,
00:55and lower hassles in terms of the cost of living.
00:58And so it's front of mind for the government.
01:00The question is, what can they do when wages are simply higher in Australia?
01:04There are some tax benefits for being in Australia versus New Zealand.
01:08So it's a real head-scratcher for the government.
01:10It's going to be very, very front and centre when it comes to the election this year.
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