Go West
The rivalry between Sydney and Melbourne has given us decades of civic enmity and jealousy; hours of round-the-BBQ discussion about the supposed coarseness of Sydneysiders as compared with the supposed cultured refinement of Melburnians; and then, of course, there is Canberra, the 鈥渃ompromise capital鈥 which lies pretty much equidistant between the two.
I鈥檓 not going to revisit the debate about which city is best - although you can, of course - other than to say that many of your comments on the Lucky City chime with an interesting piece from the .
In it, he talks about the 鈥淪ydney paradox鈥: the curious fact that the city continues to top the polls as a tourist destination, as it did earlier in the month, but is dropping down the league tables when it comes to places to live. The most recent poll suggested 20% of the people who live here are considering leaving town. It鈥檚 almost as if there are two distinct places: 鈥淕lobal Sydney鈥 and 鈥淟ocal Sydney鈥.
But it鈥檚 his comments about people leaving town and heading westward that caught my eye, and may ultimately force us to rethink Australia鈥檚 great geographic rivalry. In the future, the battle will no longer be so much between Sydney and Melbourne as east against west.
Tim Harcourt calls this the 鈥淕illy Effect鈥, a reference to Australia鈥檚 retiring cricket legend, Adam Gilchrist, who began his career in his native New South Wales but found much more success when he moved to Perth and started to play for Western Australia. Tens of thousands have followed his lead.
The 鈥淕illy Effect鈥 is borne out by a swathe of recently-released statistics. They show that Western Australia has clocked the fastest population growth of any state in Australia - 2.3% compared with a rather lackluster 1.1% for New South Wales. Western Australia also has the highest birthrate of any state in mainland Australia, with 1.98 births per woman. Despite its geographic remoteness, the population of Perth, its capital, is expected to grow by 43% by 2031.
Much of this is explained, of course, by the resources boom and the manpower needs of companies like BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto. As trade links with China and India strengthen, Perth is also well placed to benefit from its obvious geographic advantages over rivals like Sydney and Melbourne. No wonder, then, that a Western Australian, resources magnate Andrew Forrest, has just become Australia鈥檚 richest man - the first time in more than 20 years that a member of the Sydney-based Packer family has not sat atop the rich list.
To sustain the boom, Western Australia鈥檚 government is already targeting members of what demographers call 鈥渢he creative class鈥, the nation鈥檚 and the world鈥檚 smartest workers, to help fuel its growth. State officials recently visited seven Indian cities in seven days in the hope of attracting the cream of the new immigrants.
As the population of Western Australia grows, so too will its political influence and, ultimately, its number of parliamentary representatives. Perhaps Kevin Rudd, the master of the symbolic gesture, was mindful of this long-term trend when he decided to convene his first Cabinet meeting of the year not in Canberra but Perth. The Mandarin-speaking leader understands both the domestic political geography and shift in geopolitics, as he recalibrates Australian foreign policy to reflect the rise of China and, to a lesser extent, India.
I鈥檇 love to hear what else explains the lure of the west? Are you thinking of becoming part of the eastern exodus? Have you moved already? Has Perth got what it takes to rival Sydney or Melbourne?
There have been times - admittedly, usually on long-haul flights - when I鈥檝e thought it would be great if we could swivel Australia 180 degrees, so that Sydney was on the west coast rather than the east. Flights home would be a lot cheaper, the time difference with London wouldn鈥檛 be so anti-social and we could watch the sun set over the ocean. Even without such a mighty tectonic shift, perhaps something similar is already underway.
PS I鈥檓 heading west myself 鈥 Sri Lanka to get married. See you after the honeymoon.
I'm 
颁辞尘尘别苍迟蝉听听 Post your comment
Nick,
Have fabulous wedding in Sri Lanka and we hope to see some awesome wedding pictures in the paradise.
All the best
The resources boom in WA is one of the reasons why Australia is enjoying its economic boom. The WA state government is doing a lot nationally and internationally to attract the best and the brightest to its booming economy. One of my friends recently got a job offer in Perth for about $35 000 more than what she would be paid in Sydney. She's moving over there, even if it is for the short term. Meanwhile the NSW govt is lagging behind, stuck in its corruption scandals and inept management of the state. While i predict Perth will become one of the most important/prosperous hubs in the SE Asian regions in the coming future, i don't think it will ever overtake Sydney. Sydney is and will be the global power it is and the icon of Australia forever. or maybe that's just my bias coming through. Hopefully we'll be able to boot this state govt out soon to replace it with one that will lead sydney to its rightful place - on top - in australia.
While Perth is the resources capital of Australia, Melbourne the Arts capital, there is no doubt that Sydney is the financial capital. The power rests in NSW and all the large financial companies are based in Sydney. It will take many years, perhaps decades to shift that to the west coast.
i love this city, but maybe i'll move to Perth in the future, if the money is good enough but i'll always be a sydney girl at heart.
In the meantime, i wish you all the best for your wedding. Hope you have a lovely time on your honeymoon. Cheers!
The resources boom in WA is one of the reasons why Australia is enjoying its economic boom. The WA state government is doing a lot nationally and internationally to attract the best and the brightest to its booming economy. One of my friends recently got a job offer in Perth for about $35 000 more than what she would be paid in Sydney. She's moving over there, even if it is for the short term. Meanwhile the NSW govt is lagging behind, stuck in its corruption scandals and inept management of the state. While i predict Perth will become one of the most important/prosperous hubs in the SE Asian regions in the coming future, i don't think it will ever overtake Sydney. Sydney is and will be the global power it is and the icon of Australia forever. or maybe that's just my bias coming through. Hopefully we'll be able to boot this state govt out soon to replace it with one that will lead sydney to its rightful place - on top - in australia.
While Perth is the resources capital of Australia, Melbourne the Arts capital, there is no doubt that Sydney is the financial capital. The power rests in NSW and all the large financial companies are based in Sydney. It will take many years, perhaps decades to shift that to the west coast.
i love this city, but maybe i'll move to Perth in the future, if the money is good enough but i'll always be a sydney girl at heart.
In the meantime, i wish you all the best for your wedding. Hope you have a lovely time on your honeymoon. Cheers!
Perth has 200 days of sunshine a year, is 3000 miles closer to both SE Asia and Europe, an economy thats going up rather than down, and loads of UK Xpats rather than whinging aussies.
Perhaps if it were just the Pommie 20% of the population that were whingeing about Sydney the conundrum might be explained, but this is certainly not the case. I think most of the apparent exodus is explained by more better-paying jobs and lower housing costs in the West and in Queensland. Sydney also undoubtedly has the worst problems when it comes to transport and mortgage stress.
I say "apparent" because official statistics reportedly put the next influx into Sydney at well over 1,000 people a week. But then a lot of these are probably international migrants and students rather than inter-state natives relocating.
Having left Britain at the end of the Thatcher era, I only settled in Sydney last year (lived here in the early '90s as well), but I haven't regretted the choice versus the other capitals.
Two of the main things I took into consideration were the climate and the water supply. Sydney is arguably in a far better, or at least more benign, position than the other capitals on both of these scores (unless you actually like heatwaves).
The housing cost gap will close fast over the next few years and the commodity boom will fade in time. And then by comparison Perth, Melbourne and Brisbane will start to look expensive, crowded and --well, just a little provincial perhaps. I guess that I'm just too old to think about Going West.
Have a great wedding!
Perhaps if it were just the Pommie 20% of the population that were whingeing about Sydney the conundrum might be explained, but this is certainly not the case. I think most of the apparent exodus is explained by more better-paying jobs and lower housing costs in the West and in Queensland. Sydney also undoubtedly has the worst problems when it comes to transport and mortgage stress.
I say "apparent" because official statistics reportedly put the next influx into Sydney at well over 1,000 people a week. But then a lot of these are probably international migrants and students rather than inter-state natives relocating.
Having left Britain at the end of the Thatcher era, I only settled in Sydney last year (lived here in the early '90s as well), but I haven't regretted the choice versus the other capitals.
Two of the main things I took into consideration were the climate and the water supply. Sydney is arguably in a far better, or at least more benign, position than the other capitals on both of these scores (unless you actually like heatwaves).
The housing cost gap will close fast over the next few years and the commodity boom will fade in time. And then by comparison Perth, Melbourne and Brisbane will start to look expensive, crowded and --well, just a little provincial perhaps. I guess that I'm just too old to think about Going West.
Have a great wedding!
Sydney's status as the pre-eminent city in the country is a tragedy, since it sets the benchmark to be exceeded so low. To exceed Sydney in livability and cultural vibrance, a rival city need only be the equal of Nairobi.
This is particularly the case in public spaces, Perth can continue its long tradition of hideous architecture and planning safe in the knowledge that they could never sink as low as the Cahill Expressway.
Many happy returns to you and your wife, NIck!
Interesting article, as a Perthite who owned a tour company taking tourists to our natural wonders the comment nice sleepy town was Perths. As we then moved to Singapore then London I can shed a bit of light on the folly of the move West. Ask people about Perth and the Terms Lovely, beautiful, quiet, and clean come to mind. Blessed with great weather ( 2 seasons only ) and a healthy and active lifestyle. Sounds fantastic until you read between the lines.
People visit for natural wonders not interlectual stimulation, go out on a Wednesday night and 2 drunks and a dog are about all that out. Saturday just makes a night out compared to other cities. Go out too many times and you soon run out of places to go without revisiting or driving hours. The same for holidays, the beach at Albany, Margaret river or Geraldton look pretty much the same, the people buildings and weather also, so pack the 4 wheeldrive and drive hours for the same holiday over and over, Bali or Thailand as a change but that is only for the cheap booze and hotels.
The mineral boom has many people using the wildwest as a term. Men require a physical prowess, long hours on male dominates mines and lots of money means the city has a feel of sailors on shore leave.
Australia has been likend to a Working class heaven, a look at the wave of immigrants from the U.K in the last 20 years shows A building trade will get you in with open arms, it is the dream of many tradesmen to emmigrate, not the interlectual or well to do, who have made a mark in the U.K.
Perth as the new Sydney, Yes crass uncultured and thinking they live at the centre of the earth maybe.
But if you want to see how man has made his mark by art, discussion and design then please look elsewhere.
I love Perth and may retire back there as it is a beautiful retirement village but at the moment civilisation beckons.
All the Best for your wedding.
-cheers
I lived in Sydney for eight months and Perth for two years. Of the two, Perth is definitely a better city to live in. Better climate, less stress, less congestion and friendlier people. If I'd been able to secure Australian permanent residency I would have stayed there. Rejected by Australia, I moved to NZ, a more welcoming country than Australia, with a fairer immigration programme. If the Aussies are serious about addressing their permanent labour shortage they will scrap their current immigration system and allow visa-free immigration of skilled English-speakers.
"Canberra, the 鈥渃ompromise capital鈥 which lies pretty much equidistant between the two".
Are you serious ?
I've been traveling around Australia for the last year and a half, and have spent the last four months in Sydney - and about nine months in WA before hand, and have visited all the Australian capitals except Melbourne and Hobart. I reckon that Perth wins hands down as my favourite capital - it's the lifestyle that did it for me. It's just so much more laid back, and the weather is consistently better! I can't say I'm particularly taken by Sydney - it's ok, but there is so much to complain about. I really do think that because of the tourists pouring in, they don't feel like they need to work at improving the place. I'm looking forwards to Melboune to compare and contrast, but I have been warned by my former work colleagues that I am not allowed to prefer Melbs!
Perth is definitely a wonderful place to live and much closer to Asian business hubs, so it is the destination of the future.
But I still feel that Adelaide is underrated, a laid back lifestyle, excellent dry climate and much closer to all the action!
N. America's Disabled Adventurer.
Perth is definitely a wonderful place to live and much closer to Asian business hubs, so it is the destination of the future.
But I still feel that Adelaide is underrated, a laid back lifestyle, excellent dry climate and much closer to all the action!
N. America's Disabled Adventurer.
what about the water problems in Perth?
my sister & her boyfriend have just left Perth to escape the rat race and because they cant afford local house prices. I also read a piece recently that while WA has plenty of natural resources water is in short supply - this alone will govern the city's population size in the future.
According to his argument, Scott Martin must be from Perth if he keeps spelling "intellectual" as "interlectual".
Perth is a great place to retire or to escape the hussle and bussle of "city" life. Great out doors and beaches, but Arts and Culture...hmmmm, can't compete with the East coast, which ever city ones chooses.
There is also the 3000km of nothing between Perth and Adelaide too. Perth is an island, surrounded by the Indian Ocean on the west and the many deserts on the east.
If too many up root to Perth, it'll either loose its charm, or become another stressed city.
The best Indian restaurants are in Perth: FACT!
Seriously though; two great cities that have their benefits. Sydney does have the rest of the east coast which is great for some, but others may prefer the less ventured west coast.
Maybe Melbourne, is a bit of both?
Congratulations on your wedding, perhaps you could re-settle in Perth as well, and contribute to the population...
I am from Perth but i have lived in the UK for nearly 14 years. I go back every year so my family here can enjoy a relationship with my family in Perth.
I love Perth with all my heart, but it is a place where you work to live. If you live to work, as I do, there are too many distractions - beer, sand, surf, golf, sailing, socialising and generally living it up. It is like one big holiday resort.
It's not without its problems though, because of the mining boom. Housing has shot through the roof, both to build or buy existing - demand far outstrips supply.
Perth is a place where you do things, not see things. It's a place to be, not visit for a few days. I have taken my swiss wife to most parts of Australia, but her favourite place is Perth by far.
But its remoteness also means it doesn't feel attached to the rest of the world. This is not for everyone - maybe not for me.
"the supposed coarseness of Sydneysiders as compared with the supposed cultured refinement of Melburnians"
What???
Cultured refinement?? The home of Kath & Kim?!
You HAVE to be joking. This tripe about Melbourne being somehow more refined than Sydney is a myth. Have you actually SEEN the way Victorians behave at schoolies week? Have you ever been to Bali with them? Once they get over the initial shock of discovering a massive ball of fiery light up in the sky, they hit the drink and don't come up for air unless they want their hair braided or it's time to go home.
Sydney is the home of the Sydney festival, has Australia's greatest museums, is the home of an extremely vibrant arts scene, contains Australia's only internationally recognised architectural landmarks, and attracts more international visitors than anywhere else in the country.
Look, I like many things that Melbourne has to offer, but leave Sydney for that flat, boring, featureless metropolis? No thank you.
As for Perth. Well, if you take your whisky with plenty of water I suppose you'll enjoy yourself. The place is just too small. You go for a drive two minutes from the city centre (once you traverse approx 3,700 traffic lights --- why???) then suddenly you're in the middle of nowhere.
Sydney is Australia's largest city, its most internationally acclaimed, the richest, the brightest, and good god - the best.
If people want to move to Perth and Melbourne - fine. If they're that dumb that they can't appreciate just how magnificent Sydney is then good riddance.
Downsize for all we care.
Having lived in Perth for about 15 years I came back to London - most people I tell that to say 'I'm mad'. Being single I love being back in Europe, so many places to visit and cultures to experience. Perth is great for families and lifestyle, but can be very insular.
When I went back for a holiday a couple of years ago I was actually scared of walking in the central city (no-one walks!) as the only people about were drunks and gangs. I feel a lot safer walking around the West End at night. Don't get me wrong I loved Perth, but if I went back to Australia I would have to settle in Melbourne.
I am an ex-QLDer who has just moved from Melbourne to Karratha (NW Western Australia), so I have seen a different side of Western Australia. Perth looks like a great city to live in, similar to Brisbane in some ways, but a major drawback is its distance from all other major centres in Australia.
Karratha on the other hand represents what is good and bad about Western Australia. It is a tiny town of approx 12 000 people, and the great majority of workers that have moved here are for the iron, salt and gas industries. In WA if you're involved in mining, you're in a great position with excellent wages. If you're not on a very high wage with housing provided by the employer, you can't afford to move up here because groceries, housing, rent, petrol etc are SO much more expensive.
As long as all you Poms head to Perth, Melbourne or Sydney I'll be very happy. Just keep away from Brissie & The Sunshine Coast - Oh & by the way I used to be a Pom (and still have the Northern accent to prove it !!)
From an ex-tea planter of 25years, in CEYLON, as it was then, you are a very lucky chap, Nick. The girls of Sri Lanka, as it is now and in a sorry mess but still Ceylon for those who lived and worked there, are truly gorgeous, intelligent -- and so feminine.
I'm sure,if still on 大象传媒 duty there, you will bring her to OZ. which is, for me, THE best country on our planet, having lived there for too short a time, and well ahead of these "Excited States" where the world of TEA brought me and where I now live.
As they say in Scotland, ORRA BEST !!
Congratulation and best wishes mate for the marriage to your beautiful Aussie lady. Melbourne is the events and sporting/cultural capital of Australia. Sydney is the place for a holiday. Brisbane is the biggest town in the world. Perth is the place where people are jealous of Victorians. NSW and Victoria have been funding the other States since Federation.
Best wishes for your marriage to your beautiful Aussie lady. Melbourne is the events capital of Australia. Sydney is a great place for a holiday. Brisbane is the bigest little town in the world. Perth is full of people who are jealous of Victorians. Melbourne is the sporting/cultural capital of Australia. Victoria and New South Wales have been financing the other states since federation in 1901.
I lived in Sydney for years, in my youth - and my young 20-somethings raised in Canberra, now wouldn't live anywhere else than Sydney as yuppie singletons, but not for family life.
These days, I love Sydney to visit, but now its just another boring financial and tourist capital city.
Melbourne is my preferred "home" for big city lifestyle.
Canberra? The compromise capital?
Its not equidistant at all, much closer to Sydney, and with good freeways now, Canberra is almost a satellite city to Sydney. In the last 5 years or so, it has sky-rocketed and now also has all the crap of city-living: traffic congestion, high-rise and crime.
For decades Canberrans whispered "best kept secret in Australia" and played along with the national sport of Canberra-bashing to help keep it that way. But some idiot let the secret out, and they have started moving in! Grrrrr...
In your article you says that with a BR of 1.98 WA is the state having highest BR in Australia. Not true. Tasmania have 2.12.
I live in Perth, but have travelled to most of the other capital cities, and appreciated Perth all the more when I got home. The rudeness or just plain lack of interest shown by locals in Melbourne and Sydney - no friendly hellos, or kind directions in shops or on the street. No sunshine and beaches, and lazy Sundays. Perth doesn't think of itself as a cultural, social or financial capital. It has a kind, laid back, enjoying the sunshine approach to life that makes it a truly Australian capital. If its seen as small, or country town-like, that just gives its charm of locals who smile at you in the street and don't immediately dismiss others because of cultural snobbery. All you sydney- and melbourne-siders can stay there, and not pollute or dilute Perth's sunshine, booming economy, or optimistic goodwill.
"The Mandarin-speaking leader understands both the domestic political geography and shift in geopolitics, as he recalibrates Australian foreign policy to reflect the rise of China"
Is that why Australian government kow-tows to Communist China so embarrasingly and keep mostly silent about gross human rights violations
(to put it mildly) ocurring day in/day out in Tibet, Gansu, Sichuan, and last but not least, Uighuria?
I wouldn't be surprised if, with such an attitude, in 20-25 years not only Australian premier, but most of Australians spoke Mandarin.
And perhaps, Cantonese as well.
And the the beauty of it is that many of them wouldn't even have to learn those dialects.
On a completed un-related note, I am thrilled you are visiting my home country to get married. I hope you have the time of your lives in tropical paradise I miss so much (I'm slaving away in HK).
Be sure to visit the elephant orphanage at Pinnawala, its one thing you cant find anywhere else.
my sister & her boyfriend have just upped sticks and left Perth to escape the rat race and because they cant afford local house prices. I also read a piece recently that while WA has plenty of natural resources water is in short supply - this alone will govern the city's population size in the future.
I'm glad to be back in Perth after 5 years in London--the toilet capital of the world. Re the comment about European culture, art etc etc--get over it, chippy. While I spent many a weekend visiting art galleries in and around London, most poms I knew preferred to sit at home with a beer watching the round ball game. Not many seem to hang about the art districts. Keep your Anglo/Euro-centric attitudes packed away with your Shirley Valentine stories about travel. If it weren't for the great working-class attitude of this country, the place would have been another Zimbabwe pre-Mugabe. One aspect of Perth has changed dramatically over the past 10 years--an increase in the number of whingers thanks to an influx of imports from mud island.
Living in Brisbane you have a city like Perth WITH the SUNSHINE COAST AND GOLD COAST at your doorstep - and when I say Gold Coast I do not mean Surfers - there is much more on the GC then that. Brisbane has come alive in the last 5 years and the valley is great for going out. The climate and going up to Noosaville every 2nd w/e is my idea of heaven. YOur missing out sydney - your air pollution and same old same old is goign no-where - Seriously if it was not for your harbour where would you be?? Place Melbourne on that harbour any day and you would have a much better city. Overall every Australian city in contrast to the UK is in another league - it has something to do with our egalitaraian society we left behind in the UK. The class-obsessed British have got it all wrong ?
Living in Brisbane you have a city like Perth WITH the SUNSHINE COAST AND GOLD COAST at your doorstep - and when I say Gold Coast I do not mean Surfers - there is much more on the GC then that. Brisbane has come alive in the last 5 years and the valley is great for going out. The climate and going up to Noosaville every 2nd w/e is my idea of heaven. YOur missing out sydney - your air pollution and same old same old is goign no-where - Seriously if it was not for your harbour where would you be?? Place Melbourne on that harbour any day and you would have a much better city. Overall every Australian city in contrast to the UK is in another league - it has something to do with our egalitaraian society we left behind in the UK. The class-obsessed British have got it all wrong ?
The greatest service a visitor to Perth can do for the great city is to NOT say what a wonderful place it is; NOT mention the finest wines at vineyards within 30 minutes of the centre; NOT mention the golden beaches (you know, the kind that Brisbane thinks it has); SAY NOTHING of the first-class rail transit system ...
However if you have no affinity whatsoever for Brits, Kiwis or South Africans, maybe Sydney or Melbourne is for you as 80% of our migrants hail from those shores, AND they have brought their love of rugby too. So St Kilda or South Melbourne - oops sorry, Sydney supporters, if you do decide to make the move, you will get a chance to discover the game they play in Heaven.
rohan said it right, Perth is a place where you work to live ... and that's good enough for me.
I'll not say nothing against Syndey or Melbourne, as I've not been there yet, but I have been to Perth a number of time, both for work and pleasure and, as a Scot, I find it the most comfortable 'foreign' city I've ever visited.
I lead a team of employees, Scots, English & Dutch, and you woiuld not believe the infighting that starts when ever a trip to Perth is in the offing ........
Perth is great!
Ha Ha what a joke Perth is not a City ! and they have absolutley no public transport.
The thing is there are only 1.3 million people living there across 80 km so how do you think they will go if they recieve 3 million more turn out a bit like Sydney but not as spectacular!
I love that people are moving to other parts of Australia away from Sydney because with a bit of time Sydney will once again be the best place to Live in Australia. can't wait for that. And sorry to say if you dont like the City Queensland is bar far the best place to settle those gorgeous beaches and awesome friendly locals.
I have been to Perth before and they were the most horrible people i have ever met and it was because i was from Sydney what a joke! When i went to Queensland they were so friendly and didnt care where i come from. I think Oz has so much to learn from Queensland as for now i am heading home to Sydney but still considering Queensland eventually.
I cant wait to see Perth become a horrible place to live as it wont be long and i will be laughing as they were the most unfriendly locals i have ever met!they deserve it
Ha Ha what a joke Perth is not a City ! and they have absolutley no public transport.
The thing is there are only 1.3 million people living there across 80 km so how do you think they will go if they recieve 3 million more turn out a bit like Sydney but not as spectacular!
I love that people are moving to other parts of Australia away from Sydney because with a bit of time Sydney will once again be the best place to Live in Australia. can't wait for that. And sorry to say if you dont like the City Queensland is bar far the best place to settle those gorgeous beaches and awesome friendly locals.
I have been to Perth before and they were the most horrible people i have ever met and it was because i was from Sydney what a joke! When i went to Queensland they were so friendly and didnt care where i come from. I think Oz has so much to learn from Queensland as for now i am heading home to Sydney but still considering Queensland eventually.
I cant wait to see Perth become a horrible place to live as it wont be long and i will be laughing as they were the most unfriendly locals i have ever met!they deserve it
Perth is the only city in Australia that is actually building infrastructure ahead of growth, or at least not so far behind it as other cities. It will be interesting to see how they handle the next phase of inner city brownfield development. They can't keep expanding into what little fertile hinterland they have. And eventually they will have to try to re-populate the CBD!
I don't have anything against Sydney - fine place to visit, and I've had many a good time there. But some of its inhabitants need to wake up and realise they're never going to get that waterview and what they're stuck with is a dreary logjam