It's shaping up to be a battle of Bledisloe Cup proportions as Australian head hunters begin luring Kiwi talent across the Tasman with pay offers that make it impossible for local employers to compete.

Once news that a trans-Tasman bubble was imminent, approaches started to ramp up. Now that the bubble is open, the Aussies have landed and the tug-of-war for talent is getting serious, recruitment agencies say

Armed with too-hard-to-refuse salaries, often 40 per cent higher in service industries and professions like nursing, midwifery and teaching, Australian recruitment agencies also dangle the promise of a better lifestyle, warmer weather and, outside of Sydney and Melbourne, cheaper housing.

Other industries including skilled workers in construction, IT and engineering are offered salaries even higher, the NZ Herald reports.

The topic of what New Zealand is doing to retain workers and compete with Australia dominated the Sunday Panel. Cooking the Books host Frances Cook and political commentator Ben Thomas joined Francesca Rudkin to discuss the 'brain drain' and why few could be blamed for heading across the ditch, as well as Winston Peters' return to the spotlight and the Olympics handing out condoms to athletes.

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