Paul Harper from Phnom Penh writes:
Further to Janet Magnin's comments and Nick Alexander's article Taxing Australians Abroad, it is unclear to me what services I am receiving from the Australian Government. I pay for my own medical and evacuation services. The only consular service I have used in 7 years in Cambodia is to pay for my own passport.
A far more sensible approach to Australians living abroad is the consular levy recommended by Alex Oliver in the the Lowy Institute's report Consular Conundrum: The Rising Demands and Diminishing Means for Assisting Australians Overseas.
