Good points Dude. It's probably impossible to have a good climate (warm & sunny) and lovely countryside which needs sun and rain. I often think central France has the best combo. Pity about the occupants though. 
NZ is okay but too remote.
No snakes to speak of up here - only the ones trying to slap a ticket on your windscreen in car parks! Now they should be put down! And the bloody politicians of course but you probably think the same of yours. 
northland, which is the most northern province of north island, new zealand, would have been my pick, ASI. It has the best of all worlds...english speaking....sub-tropical climate......and amazingly, no snakes, scorpions or bad bugs (which is unheard of in warmer climes).
I was within a whisker of buying a lovely mountain plot there.
I have relatives in NZ....they went there in the 50s and 60s.
But ultimately, like you say, it was just too remote.
Yes agreed re politicians. As well as the poor climate in the UK, I was also totally fed up with how the govt had ruined the country.
And I was fed up with all the EU rules. I had 3 or 4 big plastic wheelie bins by the end. I couldn't as much as go for a leak, without seeking permission from some local quango council body.
If it were up to me, I'd dissolve parliament and all our local councils..........and redefine democracy and start afresh. Big business and political greed, have hijacked our institutions.
Bliar, Campbell, Straw, Brown, Mandelson, etc should all be in the Hague. IMHO
