Australians are grumpier these days than the people they disparage as whinging Poms.
National Australia Bank has issued a quarterly wellbeing index, showing that despite having one of the strongest economies in the developed world, Australians score even lower than the English on metrics such as sense of wellbeing, absence of anxiety and confidence about the future.
Radio New Zealand's Sydney correspondent reports that while the number of high income Australians is on the rise, this group scored lower than mid-income people in the happiness stakes.
The survey appears to confirm the old adage that working harder and harder to buy more and more stuff so you can keep up with the Joneses, is no way to live life.