Passport? Check. Luggage? All packed. Complicated system of pulleys, levers and converters that allow you to plug your phone in to charge overseas? According to the BBC, not anymore.

As global business correspondent Peter Day reports, the days of each country having it's own switches and sockets could be a thing of the past, as developments in China towards a universal socket standard gather apace.

And it could soon mean that households across the UK - and, indeed, the world - will need to invest in new electrical fittings.

"It is extremely hard for world travellers visiting different countries to find suitable adapters allowing proper connection to locally provided socket-outlets," said the Institute of Engineering and Technology's Mark Coles, in an interview with the news outlet. "Whilst no international standard exists to which all adapters should be made, a socket-outlet which universally accepts all types of plugs seems like a very good idea."

Which is probably why both China and Hong Kong have been introducing all-purpose sockets alongside their nationally accepted outlets since 1997, according to reports.

As a result of Hong Kong's previous occupancy by Britain, the island was set up to use three-pin plugs. But since the handover to China, residents from the two countries have travelled interchangeably - and so have to plug their shavers, phone chargers and laptops in across the two nations.

It means that the walls now feature universal sockets that take both the three-pin of the UK as well as various two-pin plugs from further afield. 

However, until an imperialistic coup shapes the plug sockets in this country, homeowners may want to hold off on switching their fixtures just yet.

But over the summer there are a number of improvements householders can make to their homes in a bid to maintain and boost the value of their property.

According to the National Home Improvement Council, minor property improvements can make a "big difference" to your property - and even oddjob tasks like installing new light switches and plastering over holes in the walls can make your house feel more like a home.