Hi James,

Many thanks for your response.

Jon

>Hi Jon,
>
>I'll try my best to answer your friend's questions. Please see below my reply under each question.
>
>Cheers
>
>
>>
>>What the current work opportunities are like?
>Australia has about 5% jobless rate. It is the best for the last 20 years.
>
>>If its possible to get contact information for IT firms in the area?
>Yes. But the contract rate has dropped substantially for the last few years.
>
>>Specific skills that are popular right now in Aus?
>>
>>His current skill set is VB6,VFP,ASP,HTML,JAVASCRIPT and SQL Server 2000.
>His skills are in demand. Most IT jobs are advertised in the following 2 URLs: www.seek.com.au and www.mycareer.com.au It's advisable for your friend to check the jobs opportunities there. However, please note that the salary package is not as generous as in UK.
>
>>
>>Please excuse the direct message regarding this but its always really interesting to know what's happening in another country.
>>
>>Regards
>>
>>Jon
>>