Migrant Stories - "Why I think NZ is backward"

Continuing our series of first hand migrant accounts from around the net.

This post was made on a British expatriate web forum. It was written by a teacher who lived in New Zealand for two years before returning to the UK.

"Hi
Someone asked me this week in a post how I could describe New Zealand as Backward. Can people help me explain as I have pondered on the subject for days

No choice in the supermarkets, if u want to home bake u r ok, want a convenience meal forget it!
Education is appalling, my opinion of having 4 kids in the UK system then NZ
No expectations for kids to leave school and go to University
The people are NOT intelligent and to get an intelligent conversation is near on impossible
Health and Safety is a joke
Music is mostly American rap and NZ follow American culture
Wages are do not match expectations, therefore lifestyle you have previously had is no where in sight
The Kiwi's do not want progress especially in all the farms I visited
NZ is not safer than the UK in our experience
Drugs are a big acceptable part of their culture
The biggest suicide rate in teenagers is in NZ as the pressure on kids to go out and work to bring in money for the family, is a bigger pressure than getting a good education in the UK
College courses are few and far between
Being so far away from other countries, it has been left behind
The fact that there is no structure to society is very hard to work with, especially as the UK is so structured
Lots of Adults in NZ believe in being in gangs, which their kids follow.

This is not a england vs nz post, but I was asked my opinion and I am sure there are lots of people out there who can help me try to explain how lots of Brits find NZ backward"

Update: please read the follow-up here
 
For more information about crime, educational standards, teen suicide rates, drugs etc. please look at our "New Zealand Facts of Life" page.
Kiwi youth suffer some of the worst health outcomes in the developed world. New Zealand youth have higher rates of mental illness, suicide, teen pregnancy and suffered more injuries than young people in other OECD countries.

66% of students entering high school aren't numerate.

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