Terry,
If not a joke then that is interesting, John.It is a very "English" joke. ;-) The joy and the hurt of New Zealand is that it is the most isolated country in the world geographically. In the modern world, a tiny distant population will find it difficult to match foreign economies of scale. NZ's economy is fairly agricultural with most produced goods imported, causing a balance of payments issue. Living in NZ is more of a lifestyle choice than an economic choice, though those who arrive with pounds from sale of their UK home will be able to buy something very nice in Auckland or a mansion anywhere else.
"... They ne'er cared for us
yet: suffer us to famish, and their store-houses
crammed with grain; make edicts for usury, to
support usurers; repeal daily any wholesome act
established against the rich, and provide more
piercing statutes daily, to chain up and restrain
the poor. If the wars eat us not up, they will; and
there's all the love they bear us."
-- Shakespeare: Coriolanus, Act 1, scene 1