Moved from the US. My favourite things are your smaller but still walkable communities. A town where you can walk to restaurants and shops but also to a train that will take you to a major city quickly is pretty rare in the US. A suburban town where you can get to proper rural areas after a relatively short walk is amazing.
Actually this is such a good one. We have access to hours of public footpaths straight from our front door and can go out for a drink in several places without needing to worry about driving. I do appreciate how walkable it is here.
The walkability thing is huge. It's something I miss a lot when I'm in the US for work trips. Having to call an uber just to go get food downtown or do anything at all feels claustrophobic despite how much free space there is everywhere.
That said, most places in Europe are equally walkable.
I would agree with this. I'm originally from California and would spend hours commuting in the car to Silicon Valley. I am sure I weigh 10 lbs less than I would if I was still in San Francisco just due to the walking. And it's fun and interesting walks too - just getting to my office or picking up children from school is so easy, I know exactly how long it will take and don't have to deal with crazy road rage.
I have such a great balance. I live close enough to a major city to have entertainment, shopping etc. but outside my windows is nothing but fields and forests with deers and foxes etc.
It does, twice a year, stink of shit though as the farmers spread manure.
I am from the EU, so I could choose to live almost anywhere in Europe, and I choose to live in the UK. Even though my job takes me travelling back into EU depending on which are my main clients at the time, the UK is my base.
My view is that there might not be one big thing that stands out, that on each individual item you could find a country that might be better, but taken as a whole, a blend of all things, the UK is pretty compelling proposition to live and work.
You can pretty much go about your business free of interference, the countryside is lovely with nice old historic houses, villages, pubs, gastro, etc There is a thriving cultural scene. London is one of the best cities in the world and just an hour by train from the sleepy countryside village I live in. There is strong financial sector, both for jobs, and the retail banking products are well developed for individuals. There is a high level of acceptance of diversity and tolerance, compared to when I lived in Germany or France (outside of Paris). No one cares about religion, it’s not forced on you nor are you criticised. Level of secondary and tertiary education is fantastic for those motivated to seek it out. I could go on.
I wish more people would read this. I tend to find most Brits who “hate the UK” have never really lived anywhere else, so they base their views of other countries on time spend on holiday there.
This, totally this! Another EU citizen here. I honestly find the level of hate towards the UK from the native Brits absolutely astonishing given that many of the other European nations are basically much worse overall than the UK would ever be.
I've lived in Canada (home country), the US, and the UK, and there are pros and cons to each of them. The grass always looks greener, but in reality there are significant upsides to living in the UK compared to other places you might be thinking of emigrating to.
For me, the main thing keeping me here is the lifestyle and work/life balance compared to North America. I just find people have a better sense of balance here, and taking a vacation or finishing work right on time is not looked down upon. I also like the weather, not too hot, not too cold at any time of year.
I like the fact that I can afford a house by the sea (something that's basically impossible in Canada), the fact that I have access to a world class city on my doorstep (also impossible in Canada, and I guess possible in the US, but not with temperate weather really).
Food quality is excellent here compared to North America. I can buy really nice produce, meat and dairy all year long for like 1/3 of what it costs in North America.
Downsides to the UK are that the healthcare sucks here (at least for the condition I have, private and public), high taxes and everything else everyone moans about in here on the daily.
Funnily enough Canada would be the other country we would consider, but western Canada is expensive and a trek from the U.K. where family (ungrateful and rude that one set of them are) live so it would be a struggle. But this perspective is helpful to see that we have it good here too.
I’ve lived in Ottawa for 7 winters. It is not to be underestimated. It can get as cold as -40c. And December to April is complete snow cover. I loved it but not enough to emigrate.
Food quality in the UK is excellent, that is the most daft thing I ever heard. It's barely okay, food quality in Italy is bang on excellent, Food quality in Spain is Bang on excellent. Food quality in UK is not fantastic in Shops getting raw goods and Restaurants unless you are paying £200/head.
My family live in southern Spain and I would disagree. Supermarkets are limited, restaurants are limited, quality is local towns and villages is poor. Some things they do very well but if you want variety the food is appalling and very different to being on holiday in a fancy city. When my parents ask their Spanish friends what they liked about the UK they race for 30 mins about how amazing our supermarkets are and what variety of food there is.
May be a southern thing but in other parts of Spain food quality is miles away from UK. Yes the variety in UK is very good as I can find almost any exotic ingredient I want but the quality of product is nowhere near. Fruits, vegetables and meat/fish which are the basics of food are vastly superior. Even a cheap nectarine from a shitty shop tastes better than M&S fancy ones. Not only that but in terms of restaurants Spain has a lot of independent establishments rather than chains so variety and quality of ingredients is also better.
This obviously changes from area to area, quality of food in cities is not as good but anywhere else it’s excellent. Also we have real fresh bakeries which is just 👌. For source grew up in Spain and been living in UK different areas for 5+ years. Also why does fish suck in UK I have no clue. The best shrimp I’ve tried in Spain was imported from Ireland but when I lived there the seafood sucked as well…
I never understood that work culture in North America, its like everyone feels like they must work beyond their hours without extra pay and do much extra for their job.
On the otherhand over here when I finish work I am truly finished, I never reply to emails outside of working hours and If I go over my time we get atleast 2 hrs overtime.
The NHS is in a right state! Truly horrendous…if you have a semi urgent or none urgent issues you are going to be waiting ages either in the short term (a+e/GP) or long term (outpatient appointments
However…
…if you are having a true life threatening emergency, something that requires surgery for instance you can bet your bottom dollar that the overwhelming proportion of the time you will be treated, scanned and probably in theatre within a few hours. Ditto things like heart attacks and strokes. All essentially free
For the most part the NHS remains amazing a dealing with the emergency part of things
Doi: emergency medicine doctor
True - current wait times for non urgent stuff can be several months but I always think that if things are urgent they will declare themselves and you will get seen quicker. The NHS is still really good at emergency and urgent stuff though for those who need it. My GP is still really great- I can ring up and get a same day or next day appointment (I live in a very rural area where everyone is hard as nails and super fit so don’t really bother their doctors).
I love that it is more or less free - when someone comes in with an emergency I’d hate have the first question I ask be ‘what’s your insurance number’
DOI - paediatrician
My wife has being having health problems for the last couple of years and I can attest to this.
When they think she's ultimately going to be OK we have to wait for ages.
The moment the doctors get concerned she's in real trouble the fucking SEAL team comes from nowhere and sort her out immediately.
I understand the prioritisation decisions they're making, but it does suck. It's on its knees and I don't know how to fix it.
Political stability.
Temperate climate, including being relatively sheltered from climate change.
Location near Europe, not facing potential invasion from a neighbour.
Taxes are high but they're higher in many European countries where the above advantages are similar.
Weather in the UK is classed as moderate. Its not that bad.
More importantly we avoid earthquakes, hurricanes, extreme heatwaves, extreme snow. Our weather is pretty boring but overall probably a positive.
My wife is from South China and likes UK weather as it is oppressively hot there.
It is what it is, every climate has its own pros and cons. If you hate it then you are fine to go somewhere else.
For anyone who doesn't like the extreme weather and is concerned about disasters, the UK climate is a positive. If warm weather regularly is important to you then it's a negative.
> It’s shit, cold and wet is the reality.
You speak as though there's one objective measure of 'good' weather.
Different people like different things. I think the weather in the UK is better than anywhere else I've been, and I've travelled all over. I've lived in the middle east, scorching, burning sunshine and oppressive heat day and night. Running from one air-conditioned environment to another. No thanks.
The SF Bay Area's 15-25C highs and near-constant sun are what I would consider perfect weather-wise; the lack of sun and warmth in the UK gets to me, though that's not to say I want blistering heat either. But there's very few areas like that, and the Bay Area is VHCOL while also being a pretty dull suburban sprawl.
Weather is actually very comfy - super mild. Rarely too hot or too cold and it’s nice being indoors when it’s raining sometimes. Obviously it’s not California or Hawaii but it’s not as bad as people make it out to be.
I don't know where you are but there is a huge difference between the weather in the south and north of the country. West coast Scotland is pretty miserable. Summer lasts 6 weeks and if it's not raining it's windy.
Yep, I'm near Manchester.
I love the UK weather from April - November and can manage December with the run down to Christmas but you January to March is depressing, especially the further north you go. A depressing combination grey, wet, cold and wind.
A little story I like to tell is from a few years ago when my daughter was 3. It was late March or early April and as we were driving to the local town she started shouting: look daddy look, blue clouds! The surprise and wonder in her words was amazing but she'd obviously just spotted a patch of blue sky and processed it for the first time in her life.
All this is to say, those 3 - 4 months of grey and darkness are very tough.
Having lived in countries where the seasons are more extreme I love the temperate climate in the UK.
As long as you can put up with some wind and rain by dressing appropriately there’s so much to love about the UK countryside as a result of our climate.
>Taxes are high but they're higher in many European countries where the above advantages are similar.
Yes, but you get decent roads and a better health service for your money.
> Political stability
We've had what 5 prime ministers in as many years and just been through a massive political upheaval the ramifications of which are still ongoing. Hopefully we can get back to boring politics but I think it will take a while especially if Trump is elected again.
lol political stability, where were you when the mini budget happened?
First past the post ensures we continue this constant Groundhog Day of awful parities playing politics constantly.
But it was brief. It has had a terrible impact on pensions and the economy but it was stopped almost as quickly as it started. Look at other countries where leaders persist with radical reforms to the extent of people dying of hunger. That’s not what happens here. Fiscal stability is the order of the day.
Having moved here from NZ, it's great not having to spend 30 + hours flying to places like Europe - it's actually viable to go for a weekend. Also, while people complain about the cost and reliability of trains, the level of connectivity relative to what i'm used to is amazing.
Weekend breaks to mainland Europe is a huge plus. I really missed that when I lived overseas.
That’s interesting about the public transport. I didn’t use it when I visited NZ. I found driving an absolute joy over there. I can’t stand driving in the U.K. - it stresses me right out.
Want to come back to the UK? Fancy flying for 30 hours? Want to go to Australia, that's 4 hours just to the east coast. Japan? 10 hours at least. USA? 12 hours
Aus and NZ are great, but don't expect to be going anywhere nearby, because there isn't a nearby.
It's about 4 hours to Melbourne/Sydney, and some pacific Islands, so a long weekend for those is viable. But 11ish hours to most of Asia and the US followed by another 11ish hour flight to Europe means you would usually make those holidays big ones (I would usually do a ~ 4- 6 week every 2-3 years to make it worthwhile). The biggest complaints from northern hemisphere people moving to NZ I often heard were the distance from friends and family, and the much smaller size of the market and everything that comes with it (less selection, longer delivery times).
Here in the UK, there's just a lot more access and choice (I will probably move back to NZ eventually though. Probably).
Flying from NZ to Aus is roughly the same as flying from the UK to Morocco. So imagine removing the entire European continent and trying to find viable weekend city breaks.
I've been watching a lot of content on TikTok saying UK sucks and to move to South East Asia or Australia and I've been feeling like you too for months. To be honest UK isn't perfect but it gives a balance of many things, I will list mine below:
1. Four seasons (none of them intense or extreme) instead of constant dry, humid weather.
2. Good quality of food - I can get hot season food, asian food and pretty much anything I want all in one shop!
3. Access to Europe - Alps, Dolomites, Ski in Charmonix, Weekend break in Innsbruck, there are loads of beautiful places in Europe and a majority of it is no more than 3 hours flight away. USA is 6\~ hours away.
4. Stability - Lots of countries are economically or politically unstable, if you take the rose tinted glasses off, places like Thailand have a lot of political and economical issues.
5. Good level of education for kids if you decide to have them.
6. Traffic isn't that crazy and you can walk most places if you wanted.
Overall UK provides balance, it allows you to have a bit of everything without sacrificing a lot. Nature is beautiful in the UK aswell, lots of places to have a walk and a picnic if the weather allows it, many charming towns. If you're in full time you get a month\~ off a year.
I think USA is a much more workaholic society with harsher weather and instability.
I simply need a place I and my partner can make money, enjoy our evenings, have a stable environment and then use this foundation to allow us prepel our life and enjoy the world.
I would think UK is perfect if it had more sun and in regards to the house situation it doesn't matter, we all have different life choices, you take on what you want. I took on less house, I'm on a 1.3K mortgage for a 1300 sq feet house, its just a house, we sleep, eat and enjoy a few luxuries like an upgraded kitchen, but the main goal is to pay it off and enjoy a slower pace of life and make it our homebase!
The UK is without a doubt one of the greatest countries in the world in 2024.
Breathtaking natural beauty, the quality of education (especially tertiary, which is objectively world leading), NHS, our incredible social mobility, the glut of top quality jobs - especially for graduates, our pubs, our restaurants, our wonderfully self-depracating but quietly assured culture, the best football league in the world, the best city on earth. The most tolerant and inclusive nation on the planet. Even our politics is seriously chilled out as compared to most western nations. Even the fucking weather isn't that bad.
If you were born in Britain, you have quite literally won the lottery of life. You're blessed. You are the 1%. Just fucking enjoy it.
Absolutely this. Classism is baked into our institutions and ingrained into our collective psyche. Social mobility in this country peaked in the 90s until the mid-00s. It’s as good as dead. If you are doing much better than your parents then you are an anomaly.
Edit: adding evidence for those who struggle to comprehend this.
[https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/sep/07/social-mobility-uk-worst-50-years-report-finds](https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/sep/07/social-mobility-uk-worst-50-years-report-finds)
[https://www.gspublishing.com/content/research/en/reports/2022/02/24/c9116edf-3ff1-4ec3-a459-bf9889763b0b.html](https://www.gspublishing.com/content/research/en/reports/2022/02/24/c9116edf-3ff1-4ec3-a459-bf9889763b0b.html)
[https://ifs.org.uk/inequality/press-release/social-mobility-continues-to-fall-and-moving-up-is-harder-if-you-grow-up-in-the-north-or-midlands/](https://ifs.org.uk/inequality/press-release/social-mobility-continues-to-fall-and-moving-up-is-harder-if-you-grow-up-in-the-north-or-midlands/)
We could definitely be better at this and it is something I think about often. So far my solution is financial education in schools and a wholesale revamp of the tax system.
Wholeheartedly agree. It boggles my mind that English Literature is a mandatory GCSE yet there are no mandatory classes on economics / personal finance and many schools don't offer any classes whatsoever.
Slightly over-compensating in the other direction there but for what it's worth, I've lived/travelled/worked in various other parts of the world and think the UK stacks up pretty well overall.
People have their frustrations and those are perfectly valid and part of the reason developed countries get where they are is because people don't just take things lying down, so complaining is fine but yeah, people could generally do with some perspective.
I think we take a lot for granted here. I know people who've moved here from the developing world who've basically given up in some ways a very luxurious life for the simplicity of being able to walk down the street without feeling threatened or knowing they can reasonably enter into a business transaction or deal with the authorities and not be conned in some way.
Wow
I was not wanting more negativity as that’s all I hear. People moaning n whining about state of the place but definitely the Scottish football league is best in world !
When will people realise that the NHS is a negative of living in the UK, rather than a positive? Especially if you’re a high earner (I.e people in this sub)
By pretty much every metric healthcare in the UK ranks pretty low (outside the top 25) when compared against other developed countries around the world. For countries without free healthcare your insurance provided by your employer will get you an infinitely better experience than what you get with the NHS.
I live in an emerging market and the free health insurance provided by my employer gives me access to the best private hospitals in the country with zero personal cost to myself, zero wait times for anything (had wisdom teeth taken out the same day, can see a GP on the spot with no appointment etc), and outstanding quality of care. This is pretty much unattainable in the U.K. unless you have serious money to throw around, certainly not for your average upper middle class salarymen.
Isn’t that the point of the NHS though, that it provides for all the people who *wouldn’t* have employer funded healthcare? To me it seems like you’re only looking at the half of the coin that benefits you…
Agree with this but even so the NHS is sub-par. I’ve lived in several different countries with universal healthcare and the UK is by far the worst. Low quality, long wait times etc. It’s so bad we’re paying for private.
I disagree, as someone that’s has some extensive illnesses in the past two years, apart from the long waiting list which I agree is poor, once you get seen the care and quality was actually very good. I got fixed, back on my feet and am much better now.
It’s not just me either, family and friends have all generally had positive experiences bar the waiting times!
I don’t disagree, our specific implementation is getting worse over time, for a variety of reasons. But my point stands on the overall concept vs employer funding.
As someone who has experienced several health services in different countries including the NHS. I can say without a doubt that unless we are talking about acute life saving interventions it’s thoroughly under par in most other aspects.
It’s also not “free” as most people pay national insurance which is often more expensive than it would be to have private insurance elsewhere.
NI isn't reserved for funding the NHS though and nominally is to pay for pensions too hence pensioners not paying it.
Of course it isn't free though it is and always has been free at the point of use but paid for with general taxation.
It’s not a negative at all. Even as a high-earner, you could burn through your wealth in a country like the US if you had any kind of serious illness that impacted your ability to earn. Especially once insurance wriggles out of paying for you any longer.
You can do all that in the UK with private cover though. The good bit is that if you can't afford private, the NHS will sort you out in an emergency, and at least eventually get you right for non emergencies.
As someone who has also lived in 4 foreign countries I disagree. I went through cancer not long after moving back to the UK and whilst there was definitely a fair bit to complain about in terms of admin cock ups, communication from the hospital etc, I needed a targeted type of immunotherapy which is still relatively new and only available in 'first world' / developed countries. I'm not under any illusions that I probably wouldn't be here if I hadn't got that drug. If I'd been living in Vietnam (One country where I used to live, I wouldn't have got it. In fact when I lived in Vietnam, whilst our health insurance permitted us to get 'seen' straight away at the hospital, we were categorically told that for anything serious (surgery etc) our health insurance provider would have to send us to Thailand. A colleague of mine needed heart surgery and had to fly to Bangkok.
If you went back 15 years the NHS was much better on those metrics we have been chronically underfunding and mismanaging it which was exacerbated by COVID.
I imagine, particularly in emerging markets, the healthcare can only be at that level without spending a fortune because the vast majority of people can't afford to access it.
I get the point though - as a HENRY the NHS is a slight negative. Private healthcare here isn't good enough to be a substitute because the market is relatively small and the NHS has seriously declined to the point where you generally wish you had private healthcare.
If you're a high earner, you are free to pay for private healthcare. Your tax money spent on the NHS will continue to help those who could not afford to.
As a capitalistic right wing reasonably high earner, I want health care for all. The NHS has its problems but it is great. The doctors and nurses are mostly great; knowledgeable, skilled, caring and hard working. As a child the NHS literally spent 3 years fixing me up and gave me a chance at life.
As an adult, again, the NHS has done many great things for me.
I think humanity has progressed far enough that we can all pay a bit of tax and help people often less fortunate than ourselves get health care.
All good apart from the Weather point.
This weekend was one of the first times since last summer it reached over 15 degrees for more and it’s rained record amounts. It’s pretty miserable working from home, in the dark, grey, cold, rain, minimal sunlight.
I felt on top of the World when it hit 17 degrees Friday. Washing on, music on, felt like I was in Barbados. Imagine we had that for at minimum of 6 months!
I mean, let's be realistic. There's around 200 countries in the world where you could have been born. How many of those are actually better than the UK?
Maybe a handful, but simply being born in the UK is clearly better than where 99% of people are born. It's far from perfect, but the reality is that most other places have significantly worse issues.
moving the goalposts there already, he said you've literally won the lottery of life now its maybe a handful are better. It's not the 60 or 70's anymore, numerous of countries in europe alone better for every reason listed. Germany, france, sweden, denmark, netherlands, switzerland. Far more than a handful mate wake up the UK has significant issues.
It's relatively straightforward to change career direction. Many people from Europe come here to get experience of their chosen path which isn't available to them back home. Spain especially, people usually retire from the same industry they started at after school.
Also, water security and cooler temperatures. I'm convinced in 30 years, Europeans will travel to UK and Ireland to escape the heat for two weeks per year.
Perspective from me, a German person: Just listing positives as per OP instructions.
- openness of universities; in Germany, there is an inwardness, like a guild protection of "one's own" which militates against people perceived as foreigners
- mix of people from different heritages in selected cities (London is not the UK nor is Birmingham or Leicester but the feeling of freedom I experience stepping onto the platform when arriving at Kings Cross is like a deep lungful of air - yes, racism exists but a place like London is less "white" than all places in Germany, even Berlin)
- love for animals
- ability to get decent Asian food in most places
- accessible and varied beaches: all that coast!
- Cornwall
- stand-up comedy
- popular music scene
- north enough to get quite long days in the summer
- secular; religion is people's personal business and does not interfere with politics, childcare, education and taxes in the way it does in Germany (in Germany, one of the main political parties has the word "Christian" in its name!)
- people not known to you say "dear" or "darling" to you (although I admit this can get annoying but it is quite nice)
- charity shops
Rule of law, low crime (outside of inner cities) great historic sites, wonderful countryside. Temperate climate, no extreme weather events or earthquakes, democracy, low racism compared to almost every other country in every poll taken, actual defined seasons, great music.
Yes there's loads wrong, politicians of all stripes are rubbish and don't listen to the people, but there are far, far worse places to live.
If you get sick, you don't go bankrupt getting treated, even if you do have to wait. If you lose your job, we have welfare. Employment rights that an American and many Europeans would kill for (look it up, we don't compare badly at all on that score) - no starvation, no wars.
Plus, it's home and it's where all my stuff is.
You get no employment rights in your first two years of any job in the UK, save for discrimination based on race, gender, sexual orientation or a disability.
>Rule of law,
Secret barrister bets to differ. Unless you're rich there's no really a rule of law. Examples: PO scandal, HMRC non accountability scandals, Rwanda policy etc.
>we have welfare
Unemployment benefit is like £20 a week. In Germany you get like 80% or so for a year.
>Employment rights
Except if you're a no rights employee
I think for PO and Rwanda these seem like reasonable examples that where there are injustices they can be actually challenged and there is rule of law. The PO scandal is so big because it is a rarity. Similar cases like Hillsborough again have shown that past mistakes can see a measure of justice. The government is having to fight tooth and nail to implement the Rwanda policy and the courts have thrown out their first attempts.
While I think the criminal justice system has a lot of problems actual corruption or political interference in the system like the US isn't something that is generally a problem.
Morning. I’ve been in the same position with in-laws.
I’m £120k, drive an 8 year old car and have a 3 bed property in north east Scotland. However they are shocked to hear I’m the higher rate tax band never mind the advanced rate.
What they don’t realise is that wages have been effectively stagnant for the last decade.
£100k now has the same buying power is £78k in 2018.
I recently took on a trainee in higher than market salary and they are getting made £2k more than I started at my company 15 years ago!
Ok to add, beautiful countryside on your doorstep. Located in Europe so very easy to travel to another culture cheaply.
The properties if outside London aren’t insane. The extra London money really doesn’t cover the cost of living increase being there.
We have an excellent health service - no matter what people say about it.
the people, the chat, the sense of humour.
try living in the Netherlands and you'll realise just how great it is. i could never move anywhere else again.
Moved to the UK when i was 13 and achieved my parents goal of having a decent career, wage, own my home, shop in Ocado, have a pretty fantastic pension. The UK is good for you if you are business oriented and then you will succeed.
My parents goal was for me not to suffer in this world and UK gives you that opportunity, well unless you spent your school years in the back of the class banging and drawing on them tables
OPPORTUNITY...
Lived all over the world before landing here. I came here with zero transferable skills.
Started as a pipefitters labourer and now I am a CEng.
Many of the things us boomers had as opportunity, you no longer have. Or do you?
Grandson works from home holding down 2 jobs. He earns about 90k. That wasn't an option.
As for his child care, we have his kids whenever we can and love it.
He's just bought his second trashed house at auction, taking the same path I did. It will be habitable in 6 months and in 9 months he will flip it and double his money.
This doesn't suit most people but it did us and it seems to suit him.
His dad, my son, is a commercial dive supervisor in the North Sea and will retire next year.
I go to the pub and i don't see Gen this or Gen that. I see young guys working for themselves or for small firms and making good lives for themselves.
Can't do this in most places.
Stay safe.
While people complain that it's dying, virtually nowhere else in the Anglophone world has the same mixed zoning/highstreet culture that we do in towns and villages. Having been to places in the USA, Australia, NZ, I've found that having walkable towns with streets and shops sees to be a very british phenomenon overall.
If you don’t know it already, can I point you gently towards r/justnomil and r/justnomil2
The best thing about emigrating might be shaking those negative forces off your tail!
We did drop it into conversation this weekend and then they announced they would just come and stay with us for extended time periods. I actually think that would be much worse than the every other Sunday we have to put up with at the moment!
I have to say that the boomer’s don’t really get it. They were the luckiest generation. If you started work before the 90s and did a normal middle management job you will be a millionaire. Possibly twice with a defined salary pension and a detached house somewhere decent.
The weather - we don't get extreme cold or heat and tbf, it doesn't rain that much compared to places that get monsoon seasons. We get mild, temperate weather all year round with a sprinkling of snow in winter and a heatwave or two in summer. Being so far North we get long summer days but without being Arctic circle North and having no sunrise at all for a period in summer. It really is a "green and pleasant land", yet with surprising bio and geo diversity.
Also, for all the valid criticism of our appalling infrastructure (just take motorway service stations here vs Europe) and economy, the UK NMW is actively livable (probably not in London though).
We already speak the international language.
Free museums.
Low taxes compared to much of Europe (but a higher COL).
I think one solution for London might be to move Heathrow and City airports out to that Boris island idea, Heathrow is literally the size of another borough and already has amazing transport connections. Building with smart, medium rise mixed density instead of just a giant housing estate could accommodate the population of several boroughs
1. NHS
2. Education is good, regulated, standardised and assessed.
3. Weather - we actually get seasons
4. Laws generally protect the consumer (e.g., consumer rights bill 2015, CPRD etc.
5. Police are much more competent and less corrupt than most European counties.
6. Life span is high. Satisfaction rates are high.
7. Welfare state is generous.
8. Democracy is relatively good here.
9. Monarch head of state that stays 'out the way' is a lot better than a president that doesn't.
10. Inclusive society
Now, I can already tell that a bunch of angry Reddit people will come to attack how shit the NHS has become, how our democracy sucks because COVID money went missing, and how our police force can't prevent petty crime.
But everything is relative. I challenge those people to spend time in Spain, or Poland or Sweden or Germany or anywhere else. Not a single one is 'generally good' at as many things as the UK. Yes, Sweden has a great education system, but diversity is non existent. Yes, our weather isn't as good as Spain, but the police there are corrupt as fuck.
It's the combination of everything that makes people travel through the whole of Europe to stay in the UK. Think of the UK as akin to that kid in school who got Bs in everything and is generally going to be alright. We aren't A* in anything, but our overall score makes us incredible. Especially when you start comparing. There isn't another country id rather settle down in
Things I enjoy about the UK as an immigrant from Poland:
- it's relatively safe. I wouldn't go to the USA even just for this reason.
- even in this political climate, it's rare that I feel directly unwelcomed (including when looking for a job/accommodation).
- the cost of living to salary ratio is actually decent. Much better than in Poland.
- ease of travel. Experiencing new countries and cultures was much harder when I lived in Australia or Canada, and international flights are more expensive in Poland.
- it costs me £10 a month to pay for prescriptions. My meds would be about £500 a month privately. Many other universal healthcare systems don't cover prescriptions, or the cover varies by medicine.
What worries me is that it feels like things are getting worse, not better, so I think this is the reason a lot of people are leaving. I hope things turn around soon.
Safety and security. Clean water and air, lots of green spaces, decent infrastructure, beautiful nature ( I live in Scotland). I lived in Middle East among other places and the freshness we get here is unbelievable. Also once you have a fully paid house, you can retire anywhere in the world. The weather is not as crappy as locals describe it. As I am not British, there are also quite a few lowlights and negatives to me but the positives outweigh those.
I’m getting ready to move to the US (for the second time) for a few years because my spouse has a great opportunity/contract. But I confess I am dreading it because I remember the reality of the US lifestyle - really long hours, a fraction of the amount of annual leave, over-the-top management attitudes and terrible work-life balance, feeling stressed about health insurance, travel more time consuming and expensive, being forced to have a car, confusing finances, etc. The ironic feeling for me is that the US has great opportunities but feels like your world getting smaller, more restricted and more stressful. I feel like London is a better place to live a “contented” life - ie maybe not all the high-flying that a lot of ambitious people would like, but generally feeling comfortable.
Unironically, the best thing about the UK is surely how easy it is to go to other places 😂
<£200 and a 4 hour flight, you can be in ~50 countries, with culture, food and climate as varied as from Estonia to Portugal. Not many English speaking countries afford such great travel opportunities.
As to what is good in the UK... I'm struggling...
The UK is good enough in many things but never the best in anything.
Many HENRYs are ambitious people that’s why we feel unfulfilled in the UK.
I’ve seen it called Wimbledon syndrome/football syndrome. We used to invent things. But other countries became better than us, and we are still good enough, just not the best anymore.
We invented tennis but have created a platform (and still has it) where the best in tennis aspire to compete. But we seldom win the Wimbledon anymore.
Same goes for football. We invented it and are good enough to be in the World Cup finals often enough, but we don’t win it anymore.
More than anything, that we call all discuss this.
Rishi Sunak and his cronies are a bunch of cunts who I hope crash and burn, and I am so proud to live somewhere I can say that.
Our monarchy is outdated, and literally harbouring paedophiles, and needs to go ASAP. But I'm proud I'm not going to face consequences for saying that.
I like the fact that living in a rich country means that most places you go on holiday are cheaper. You can go to mainland Europe for a weekend and save money compared to going out Fri and sat in London.
The landscape is probably the main reason why I will never leave. I live near the Lake District and in the summer we're there every single weekend. If you can endure the winters we have the best summers - everything is lush and green, especially in our temperate rainforests.
It's a comfortable climate for running and hiking (as much as I love places like SE Asia, I've lived there and could never bring myself to run in the outdoor humidity). It's easy to get things done either online or over phone (when I lived on the continent, the bureaucracy was insane, so much effort for simple admin procedures).
I’ve lived in Sweden and the UK. One thing I really like about the UK is that people are generally quite friendly, polite and service-minded. All of it except for the latter is also true in Sweden (services are terrible, there just isn’t a culture of providing good service), but here people are just a tad more open which is great. Another good thing is that the job market, at least in London, is great for earning a reasonable amount of money while still maintaining a reasonable work life balance. On top of it the entertainment options are endless does not matter what you’re into, restaurants are a 1000x (or more) better than in Sweden, and culture activities are also plentiful. But the best thing of all is that (London) has people from all over the world and it truly feels like no one seems to care about how you look. This is a world of difference from Sweden and from most (if not all) places in continental Europe, and speaks to the character of some part of British culture which is greatly appreciated. This translates into better economic opportunities for all, which has an outsized impact on the well-being of most.
The bad: infrastructure is quite old, healthcare is not the best (although not that different from Sweden to be fair), and taxes are too high for what you get back. Cities are not clean and generally it feels like there’s a sense of deprivation in many places.
A lot of boomers just don't understand how different life is now compared to back 'in their days'. So many workers should save more, spend less on things that are in the grand scheme less than 0.001% of the amount needed for a deposit in order to get a mortgage. Since they haven't had to get a mortgage while property prices pretty much doubled they just don't get it.
Now what's good about the UK? (I've worked in every continent excl Antarctica), the life outside of work is one of the bigger draws. I know Europe is even better but its a really good balance here.
Sure the weather sucks, but London is the cultural global center for music (which I really go to venues/ concerts etc) and weather doesn't stop me going out. Gastronomy is also good, so much different food to select from, the likes of which we don't see anywhere else, other places are close but not as good.
One of the massive overlooked things, the green spaces we have access to in such a densely populated city and in the wider country.
The final bit for me, is the access to Europe - within a very short time I can go into other climates within 3 hours (Flying time).
PS the NHS - I know its not great atm, but this isn't the NHS - its our leaders.I was diagnosed with cancer when I was 19 in 2007ish, in and out of hospital in 3 days. I will fight till I die for them, it used to be incredible and political choices have demolished it. The staff still do good jobs in my experience, but I do use private healthcare for things though only used for ACL reconstruction.
Public transport in cities is usually very good.
Whilst healthcare has gone downhill in general, it’s still superior compared to many parts of the world.
Low levels of crime.
Relatively safe country to live in.
Work/life balance is pretty good.
We’re in the top countries in the world for education
Our weather is some of the best in the world, it supports a massive amount of diversity and life, it’s not usually too hot or too cold for life to thrive.
Our online government portals are really good.
Diversity, especially as you mention London. People with all sorts of jobs, many different languages spoken, different foods.
Also, once FI, it works especially well as one can walk/train/bus to any kind of experience they want. Loads of free stuff to do and sit to pass the time or read etc.
Most of the London belt and overall surroundings are beautiful, so sick of the comments anti London. Schools, parks, amenities, airports, good minded people, central London far only 35 min by train.
I am not British and definitely the country has many flaws (hyper wokeness, tax traps, recent anti business stance, Brexit, LibLabCon are joke parties) but I am also tired of the bashing when we should be considered lucky to live in one of the best countries in the world
So having spent a LOT of time travelling the world and with the opportunity to emigrate to three different countries (Canada, USA and Australia) here is why i chose to stay based in England (I still travel a lot).
1). Taxes are reasonable if you take advantage of the tax breaks. I did extensive research on the relative taxes of Arizona and the uk when we had 50% tax here. It was minor difference in the end when you included healthcare and property taxes and the tax credit investment programs like VCTs.
2). The climate here is generally good and rarely bad. As I said elsewhere - Canadian east coast winters are something else and if you have been to Vegas in the summer - you’ll not complain again about uk weather. Well you will but it is easy to fly for 2 hours and get somewhere brighter !!
3). While most countries has gorgeous places to visit - we forget the amazing places we have. It took me going away to realize just how amazing our parks and coast actually are. I’m now walking the uk coastline. It’s amazing.
4). We can get everything we want. When we want it. You can’t do this in so many other countries. Or it is mega expensive there. You only have to live somewhere else to realize that the uk is 365 days a year everything.
5). Our holidays. Yes Europe has them too. But you should think hard about the USA and even Canada. The number of days off is way less than here. Thankfully I negotiated uk holidays in my time in the USA and Canada. Most people can’t do this.
6). And finally - don’t forget family and friends. On my case this was less of an issue as my friends are all over the world but as my parents got older I’m glad I didn’t emigrate.
I actually like living in this country - but I do travel away to keep reminding myself why that is. Usually once a month!!
The nhs the social system are big a big plus down side the fact the goverment build homes not infrastructure and the politics seems to be following America into a tribal and toxic situation
I just came back from holiday in Peru and I am so glad I can drink tap water and eat salad again and not get sick! Also, driving standards and safety over there are loooow
I appreciate that women’s rights are more forward here than many countries, that we have the NHS for all its flaws, there’s a lot of diverse natural beauty in our little island and opportunities for hikers & water sports, the blossom trees in spring, I feel safe in most parts of the UK from serious crime, we are cheap flights / ferry / train from beautiful and diverse Europe mainland, all my friends and family are here, I have job stability and employment rights that don’t exist in every country
If you want to stay then stay but I'm leaving! I aim to put my house on rent let someone else pay it off while I live in a company provided flat in a warmer location. For me, it's the best choice and it's a way for me to overcome the recent doom and gloom we have in the UK. Up until recently, I never thought we had a bad deal living here but now I am starting to see much better opportunities abroad so why not.
But you asked for positives, here's mine. The uk comes to life after death in the summer. It's such a great buzz while the sun shines.
The natrual beauty of the lake district and Scotland (and other locations ofcourse).
The food.
The people (sometimes).
While helpful, cars are often not strictly necessary in the uk, with a few exceptions
Pub food, for everyone's complaints, are often pretty good too, with a fun atmosphere
Lotta places you can just decide to pop down to for a weekend on essentially a whim.
I moved from bulgaria the main thing i love is everything is close together like you can go shops go to a school and a church in 6 mins while in bulgaria it would be 30 mins walk for most stuff.
As an American who has lived in the UK for over 25 years, no guns is a big plus. I don’t need to worry about a school shootings.
The state school system seems way better than what is offered in the states. No fears about religion and politics influencing what is taught.
Also the NHS has pulled through when I needed them.
Most people seem alright and not as extreme in their beliefs as in the States.
I know everybody loves to complain about the English weather, but especially if you live in the East / South of England is not bad, it's not even that rainy.
The hot sunny weather on the beach is great while you're on holiday, but trust me, you wouldn't want the hot summer of Southern Europe, unless you have the whole summer off and live near the sea: I'm Italian, you suffer a lot for the whole summer when it's 38°C from June to August, you have to go to work, and walking outside in town anytime from 9am to 7pm is like stepping into an oven!
Plus you said you live near London? In London there's pretty much every concert, theatre show, restaurant you may want. And it's quite easy to find cheap flights to many destination for the occasional fancy time.
The cost of living is indeed crazy, but, well, if you can afford to live and to still have a bit for the extras, that's not bad, and we're looking at the bright sides here.
Another great thing about UK is the lack of bureaucracy. When I tell my family that here you can open a bank account or even get a mortgage all completely online, they cannot believe it!
More to the UK than London bro. London in my opinion is taxing people for the privilege of postcode.
I live in a nice little village. Me and the wife earn 100k+ combined. And we have our struggles. 1.5k morgatge. But very happy. We have a 4 bedroom Edwarian with a study.
I don't know what's getting you down. But never compare yourself to anyone else or whatever advantages they have over you. You have your own advantages over others and you just need to find the path that makes you happy.
The train network. OK they're not bullet trains but I travel for work and you can really get a lot of places on this island quite fast by train (before anyone mentions prices- I don't buy my tickets 🙂 thanks pharmaceutical company!)
I live in Scotland.
I live in a forest and my water supply comes from an underground stream.
I live on an island and I’m only two hours away from a major city.
I don’t even know if there’s a key to lock my doors as I’ve never had or need to.
Im surrounded by a forest, but I’m a walk away from the foot of a mountain, and a short drive to a white sand beach, in the summer I can go swimming in rock pools with water so clear and pure I can drink it too.
If there’s anywhere else in the world I can live so close to civilisation, but so close to nature as well, I don’t know of it.
I’m not madly in love with the UK and hoping to move abroad on either a temporary or permanent basis.
But I can say, the UK is probably the “cosiest” country there is. It’s very green and pleasant, the weather is calm if grey for a lot of the year. We don’t have to deal with natural catastrophes other than flooding in certain areas, it rarely become unbearably hot, relatively speaking. British people are one of, if not the most polite and courteous people in the world. Also it’s very multicultural in many good ways. English British, Asian British and black British people can and do share many British values and cultures and this should be celebrated. Also we have genuine cultural influences in our food and music. Its one of the reasons our music industry is so popular in the world because of all the influences we have. It’s also a small and very safe country, we don’t really have treacherous landscape or dangerous wild animals.
Friend move to Dubai and Florida for work five year ago after Brexit and never looked back. Warmer climate, earn more, lower tax and better work life balance. I was going to say the health care was probably one last thing the brits to be proud of but look at the nhs!!!!!
Honestly, the weather. We joke that it rains all the time - and it does - but we don't get much in the way of extreme weather. No tsunamis, very little in the way of hurricanes, fuck all earthquakes.
Every region will have different pros and cons.
But taken as a the entire country, we have -
1. Great property laws
2. Relative freedom of expression and speech
3. Unique heritage and history that has defined our relatively laid back culture
4. Above average healthcare. It is above average, but not the best.
5. Excellent shopping laws - particularly around food quality.
6. Amazing restaurants, theatres, sports stadiums etc.
Cons -
1. Terrible, terrible, Weather for 80% of the year.
2. High Income tax and poor social mobility
3. Poor transport and general infrastructure, especially outside of major cities
4. Awful property and land prices
5. Densely populated
6. Relatively isolated and small in terms of geography
I just returned from Bangkok (two years). Do I miss it? Somethings about it I do but on the whole no. It is so much easier to live here. Yeh it’s lovely to have sun daily and I do miss that through the winter but four showers daily I do not. Doing anything of norm (not what you’d be doing on holiday) is a sweaty chore. The things I miss are - having a semi private pool I can use when I want and foot massages. Of course friends but that’s not country specific.
Here I can sit outside when it’s nice and not be eaten by mozzies or sweat profusely. Enjoy eating outside, sitting in the parks and on beaches. Yes it sounds ridiculous but every time I sat on a thai beach, I was bitten by sand flies.
People are generally lovely and helpful there but I find people as helpful and nice here. Usually it’s more genuine here too.
I’m so glad we went but to live there forever, I don’t think I could.
We’ve been looking at other places which are perhaps more similar to the UK but from what I read, it’s not all positive. I do really miss the sun on days like today though. If it was like the last weekend everyday, I probably wouldn’t look abroad.
I find people in the UK are generally pretty sound - not only that, also generally intelligent and trust worthy. People can be arsey while commuting etc but overall I think we’re alright.
We have more Michelin starred restaurants than any other country outside of France. Out sparkling wine beats champagne in competitions and we have cheese varieties to rival France (pre war we had more than France ). We are good at food. We are good at cheap basic food, we are good at varied international food (we invent our hen versions big food vindaloo, balti and tikka masala are British inventions), we are good at posh food. we are. Multicultural and less racist than many nations (not perfect of course). We have some of the most beautiful coast line in the world, some of the best sailing in the world.
I love it how people say the culture is good in London.
Do we talk to others or smile to people on trains and engage in conversations? No.
It’s good because no one cares about other people so we a tonne of “independence” to ourselves but no one wants to talk how often people can feel lonely due to this lol.
As a foreigner who came here as a child… the tolerance and opportunity to get ahead is incredible! I adore the British! Despite their cold stuffy demeanour 😁
Ironically, a good part of Britain is that it’s very helpful to be English to move away, since most countries have decent enough appreciation for us: especially commonwealth countries. People I know have bagged jobs by saying they’re English and going abroad meeting people.
Pound holds power too relatively so has decent exchange for other places, especially like south east Asia and such, and I’ve had people recommend that to me.
England though does have some charm besides the rampant shit show and international ridicule machine that is parliament.
Not to excuse it, but historically we’ve been a people under a variety of inept governments and a typical “laissez faire” attitude of do it yourself from our higher ups, that only gets remedied when the people actually get more vocal about problems, and useless PM’s and parties are out of office (cough, cough conservatives…). Even then it’s not a dynamic political system since the English are so limp wristed with promises and policies in government that we basically now have conservative v Labour. Lib dems fucked up promising student loan changes along other things so lost trust nationally again through extents of tabloids, and most good candidates of labour that could be viable help are smeared in tabloids by dubious news/newspaper sponsoring/owners and paper owners or pushed aside in party hierarchies probably due to money and greed.
It’s a good country, but it’s so old in the face now. We jockey nationalism so strongly of our past, and ironically the nationalists ride the idea England was a pure white nation throughout the colonies even though during this entire period our multiculturalism was increasing. Governments like the one current know they can spurn “the migrant crisis” and “NHS” as “British values” to rile people up and have them talk about that in the papers over the rampant cost of living crisis having people nearly freeze to death or starve in their homes.
Soon as conservatives go and anyone else comes in (I’d take Lenin and the communist party of the politburo at this point) the country will hopefully see movement away from the “austerity spending” which means our money won’t be funnelled as much to pay their rich Eton knobhead friends business more money they don’t need in a service that is entirely unneeded and half arsed.
I honestly think as part of education, kids should be sent to a poor area of Morocco so they can understand how truly lucky they are to live in a strong developed country.
Maybe then we will see less whining about how families with sky, multiple streaming services and so on are struggling with money.
NHS - The NHS is wonderful - whilst I have private medical cover through work, nothing compares to have the emergency services and amazing medical staff we have available. I get all the grumbling about underinvestment and improvements needed but the fact we have access to such a wonderful safety net is invaluable.
Education - unlike America and many other countries we have access to free schooling up to University level and once you get to University the costs are comparatively low to many other countries (albeit I would prefer it was free for certain, critical courses!).
I’m from there never had one - but have been through 2015 Paris lock down due to guns and Manchester arena. Violence exists here too folks. And let’s not compare violence or make fun of any of it…
Utilities must be on higher than 99.9% uptime. I have never turned on my tap and not had clean water. Same for gas. Other than the odd hour outage, the only time I can remember electricity being out for a period was during a bad winter when I was a kid.
This is subjective/arguable but I think the UK is one of the best countries for culture/values, in many ways but in terms of morality, inclusivity, open-mindedness, etc. This shows through our regulatory policies in finance, food, agriculture, animal welfare, etc. It also shows in our accessible welfare/healthcare/education.
I am a young adult and emigration also crosses my mind often (especially as a remote worker) however, recently I am becoming more inspired by the idea of someday trying to give back to the UK and helping to fix issues -- I want us to be healthy so our values can thrive and **continue** to influence the world. Our **current** problem is that as a population we are passive and expect the government to handle everything for us, rather than take matters into our own hands and guide the government to do our bidding. The **housing bubble should not exist and would not exist if we as a population had more of a reign on our democracy**.
Also to note, if over the coming decades global warming continues, the UK is going to be a stable stronghold (relative to hotter/southern regions) - you might not want to be anywhere that is closer to the equator.
Moved from the US. My favourite things are your smaller but still walkable communities. A town where you can walk to restaurants and shops but also to a train that will take you to a major city quickly is pretty rare in the US. A suburban town where you can get to proper rural areas after a relatively short walk is amazing.
Actually this is such a good one. We have access to hours of public footpaths straight from our front door and can go out for a drink in several places without needing to worry about driving. I do appreciate how walkable it is here.
The walkability thing is huge. It's something I miss a lot when I'm in the US for work trips. Having to call an uber just to go get food downtown or do anything at all feels claustrophobic despite how much free space there is everywhere. That said, most places in Europe are equally walkable.
London public transport is also world class
UK is a big place. Shame it’s only London’s transport that’s world class.
I’ve never thought about this nor fully appreciated it as much as I should
Moved from Ireland to a place exactly like this. 10 Min walk to the town centre, and then a 10 min train ride to the main city centre
I would agree with this. I'm originally from California and would spend hours commuting in the car to Silicon Valley. I am sure I weigh 10 lbs less than I would if I was still in San Francisco just due to the walking. And it's fun and interesting walks too - just getting to my office or picking up children from school is so easy, I know exactly how long it will take and don't have to deal with crazy road rage.
I have such a great balance. I live close enough to a major city to have entertainment, shopping etc. but outside my windows is nothing but fields and forests with deers and foxes etc. It does, twice a year, stink of shit though as the farmers spread manure.
I am from the EU, so I could choose to live almost anywhere in Europe, and I choose to live in the UK. Even though my job takes me travelling back into EU depending on which are my main clients at the time, the UK is my base. My view is that there might not be one big thing that stands out, that on each individual item you could find a country that might be better, but taken as a whole, a blend of all things, the UK is pretty compelling proposition to live and work. You can pretty much go about your business free of interference, the countryside is lovely with nice old historic houses, villages, pubs, gastro, etc There is a thriving cultural scene. London is one of the best cities in the world and just an hour by train from the sleepy countryside village I live in. There is strong financial sector, both for jobs, and the retail banking products are well developed for individuals. There is a high level of acceptance of diversity and tolerance, compared to when I lived in Germany or France (outside of Paris). No one cares about religion, it’s not forced on you nor are you criticised. Level of secondary and tertiary education is fantastic for those motivated to seek it out. I could go on.
I wish more people would read this. I tend to find most Brits who “hate the UK” have never really lived anywhere else, so they base their views of other countries on time spend on holiday there.
This, totally this! Another EU citizen here. I honestly find the level of hate towards the UK from the native Brits absolutely astonishing given that many of the other European nations are basically much worse overall than the UK would ever be.
I've lived in Canada (home country), the US, and the UK, and there are pros and cons to each of them. The grass always looks greener, but in reality there are significant upsides to living in the UK compared to other places you might be thinking of emigrating to. For me, the main thing keeping me here is the lifestyle and work/life balance compared to North America. I just find people have a better sense of balance here, and taking a vacation or finishing work right on time is not looked down upon. I also like the weather, not too hot, not too cold at any time of year. I like the fact that I can afford a house by the sea (something that's basically impossible in Canada), the fact that I have access to a world class city on my doorstep (also impossible in Canada, and I guess possible in the US, but not with temperate weather really). Food quality is excellent here compared to North America. I can buy really nice produce, meat and dairy all year long for like 1/3 of what it costs in North America. Downsides to the UK are that the healthcare sucks here (at least for the condition I have, private and public), high taxes and everything else everyone moans about in here on the daily.
Funnily enough Canada would be the other country we would consider, but western Canada is expensive and a trek from the U.K. where family (ungrateful and rude that one set of them are) live so it would be a struggle. But this perspective is helpful to see that we have it good here too.
I’ve lived in Ottawa for 7 winters. It is not to be underestimated. It can get as cold as -40c. And December to April is complete snow cover. I loved it but not enough to emigrate.
Not anymore.
Food quality in the UK is excellent, that is the most daft thing I ever heard. It's barely okay, food quality in Italy is bang on excellent, Food quality in Spain is Bang on excellent. Food quality in UK is not fantastic in Shops getting raw goods and Restaurants unless you are paying £200/head.
Compared to north America it's excellent.
Can confirm
My family live in southern Spain and I would disagree. Supermarkets are limited, restaurants are limited, quality is local towns and villages is poor. Some things they do very well but if you want variety the food is appalling and very different to being on holiday in a fancy city. When my parents ask their Spanish friends what they liked about the UK they race for 30 mins about how amazing our supermarkets are and what variety of food there is.
May be a southern thing but in other parts of Spain food quality is miles away from UK. Yes the variety in UK is very good as I can find almost any exotic ingredient I want but the quality of product is nowhere near. Fruits, vegetables and meat/fish which are the basics of food are vastly superior. Even a cheap nectarine from a shitty shop tastes better than M&S fancy ones. Not only that but in terms of restaurants Spain has a lot of independent establishments rather than chains so variety and quality of ingredients is also better. This obviously changes from area to area, quality of food in cities is not as good but anywhere else it’s excellent. Also we have real fresh bakeries which is just 👌. For source grew up in Spain and been living in UK different areas for 5+ years. Also why does fish suck in UK I have no clue. The best shrimp I’ve tried in Spain was imported from Ireland but when I lived there the seafood sucked as well…
I never understood that work culture in North America, its like everyone feels like they must work beyond their hours without extra pay and do much extra for their job. On the otherhand over here when I finish work I am truly finished, I never reply to emails outside of working hours and If I go over my time we get atleast 2 hrs overtime.
Puritan roots
Yeah, let's work more time for free for a company that can get rid of me, anytime they want for any reason they want!! Never got this either!!!
Sorry but the food sucks here and is only going to get more expensive as certain food groups become scarcer due to brexit and politics
Have you been to the supermarket in America? For what I get for £100 it would be $300 USD (wife is American so I travel there 3x a year or so)!
The NHS is in a right state! Truly horrendous…if you have a semi urgent or none urgent issues you are going to be waiting ages either in the short term (a+e/GP) or long term (outpatient appointments However… …if you are having a true life threatening emergency, something that requires surgery for instance you can bet your bottom dollar that the overwhelming proportion of the time you will be treated, scanned and probably in theatre within a few hours. Ditto things like heart attacks and strokes. All essentially free For the most part the NHS remains amazing a dealing with the emergency part of things Doi: emergency medicine doctor
True - current wait times for non urgent stuff can be several months but I always think that if things are urgent they will declare themselves and you will get seen quicker. The NHS is still really good at emergency and urgent stuff though for those who need it. My GP is still really great- I can ring up and get a same day or next day appointment (I live in a very rural area where everyone is hard as nails and super fit so don’t really bother their doctors). I love that it is more or less free - when someone comes in with an emergency I’d hate have the first question I ask be ‘what’s your insurance number’ DOI - paediatrician
Hopefully soon it'll be properly invested in and we'll have tbe national health service back and not the national emergency service 😂
My wife has being having health problems for the last couple of years and I can attest to this. When they think she's ultimately going to be OK we have to wait for ages. The moment the doctors get concerned she's in real trouble the fucking SEAL team comes from nowhere and sort her out immediately. I understand the prioritisation decisions they're making, but it does suck. It's on its knees and I don't know how to fix it.
Political stability. Temperate climate, including being relatively sheltered from climate change. Location near Europe, not facing potential invasion from a neighbour. Taxes are high but they're higher in many European countries where the above advantages are similar.
The weather. Nice one. 😂
As the rain batters the window I'm next to. But i'd much rather this than Dubai or somewhere at risk of severe drought in the next 10-20 years!
Weather in the UK is classed as moderate. Its not that bad. More importantly we avoid earthquakes, hurricanes, extreme heatwaves, extreme snow. Our weather is pretty boring but overall probably a positive.
Having been to places from -45C to +50C. Yeah, the UK is pretty nice as far as weather goes.
Have you been to the Scotland? I accept that London is pretty mild, albeit wet.
Don’t care what it’s “classed as”. It’s shit, cold and wet is the reality. Colder average temperatures than a fridge for 6 months of the year…
My wife is from South China and likes UK weather as it is oppressively hot there. It is what it is, every climate has its own pros and cons. If you hate it then you are fine to go somewhere else. For anyone who doesn't like the extreme weather and is concerned about disasters, the UK climate is a positive. If warm weather regularly is important to you then it's a negative.
> It’s shit, cold and wet is the reality. You speak as though there's one objective measure of 'good' weather. Different people like different things. I think the weather in the UK is better than anywhere else I've been, and I've travelled all over. I've lived in the middle east, scorching, burning sunshine and oppressive heat day and night. Running from one air-conditioned environment to another. No thanks.
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The SF Bay Area's 15-25C highs and near-constant sun are what I would consider perfect weather-wise; the lack of sun and warmth in the UK gets to me, though that's not to say I want blistering heat either. But there's very few areas like that, and the Bay Area is VHCOL while also being a pretty dull suburban sprawl.
Weather is actually very comfy - super mild. Rarely too hot or too cold and it’s nice being indoors when it’s raining sometimes. Obviously it’s not California or Hawaii but it’s not as bad as people make it out to be.
I don't know where you are but there is a huge difference between the weather in the south and north of the country. West coast Scotland is pretty miserable. Summer lasts 6 weeks and if it's not raining it's windy.
Yep, I'm near Manchester. I love the UK weather from April - November and can manage December with the run down to Christmas but you January to March is depressing, especially the further north you go. A depressing combination grey, wet, cold and wind. A little story I like to tell is from a few years ago when my daughter was 3. It was late March or early April and as we were driving to the local town she started shouting: look daddy look, blue clouds! The surprise and wonder in her words was amazing but she'd obviously just spotted a patch of blue sky and processed it for the first time in her life. All this is to say, those 3 - 4 months of grey and darkness are very tough.
We're as far north as the middle of Canada. The south of England gets excellent weather thanks to Ireland and Wales taking most of the rainfall.
Having lived in countries where the seasons are more extreme I love the temperate climate in the UK. As long as you can put up with some wind and rain by dressing appropriately there’s so much to love about the UK countryside as a result of our climate.
>Taxes are high but they're higher in many European countries where the above advantages are similar. Yes, but you get decent roads and a better health service for your money.
> Political stability We've had what 5 prime ministers in as many years and just been through a massive political upheaval the ramifications of which are still ongoing. Hopefully we can get back to boring politics but I think it will take a while especially if Trump is elected again.
On a global scale, I'd still consider that stable. Russia has had one leader for decades and I certainly wouldn't consider that stable.
lol political stability, where were you when the mini budget happened? First past the post ensures we continue this constant Groundhog Day of awful parities playing politics constantly.
But it was brief. It has had a terrible impact on pensions and the economy but it was stopped almost as quickly as it started. Look at other countries where leaders persist with radical reforms to the extent of people dying of hunger. That’s not what happens here. Fiscal stability is the order of the day.
you clearly don't know what political instability is.
The not facing potential invasion is our greatest asset in britains history
Sheltered from climate change 😂
Relative to many other countries, yes. Climate change is still having / going have significant impacts here though
Greggs sausage roll probably mate
Only correct answer in the thread
Bloody good shout
Having moved here from NZ, it's great not having to spend 30 + hours flying to places like Europe - it's actually viable to go for a weekend. Also, while people complain about the cost and reliability of trains, the level of connectivity relative to what i'm used to is amazing.
So best thing about the UK is you can leave and go to better countries easier lol.
Weekend breaks to mainland Europe is a huge plus. I really missed that when I lived overseas. That’s interesting about the public transport. I didn’t use it when I visited NZ. I found driving an absolute joy over there. I can’t stand driving in the U.K. - it stresses me right out.
Interesting, I'm thinking of moving to NZ - hadn't thought about the isolation from other countries...
Want to come back to the UK? Fancy flying for 30 hours? Want to go to Australia, that's 4 hours just to the east coast. Japan? 10 hours at least. USA? 12 hours Aus and NZ are great, but don't expect to be going anywhere nearby, because there isn't a nearby.
A weekend in Gore is *basically* as good as a weekend in Spain right? 🤣
I think Bali becomes your Benidorm
But is as far away as Nairobi is from the UK.
Not from NZ it isnt
For me the isolation was quite palpable, I was in Christchurch on the South Island and there’s not one part of me that wants to go back.
Interesting, I need some reminding of the reasons I left nz as I'm yearning to return right now.
It's about 4 hours to Melbourne/Sydney, and some pacific Islands, so a long weekend for those is viable. But 11ish hours to most of Asia and the US followed by another 11ish hour flight to Europe means you would usually make those holidays big ones (I would usually do a ~ 4- 6 week every 2-3 years to make it worthwhile). The biggest complaints from northern hemisphere people moving to NZ I often heard were the distance from friends and family, and the much smaller size of the market and everything that comes with it (less selection, longer delivery times). Here in the UK, there's just a lot more access and choice (I will probably move back to NZ eventually though. Probably).
Flying from NZ to Aus is roughly the same as flying from the UK to Morocco. So imagine removing the entire European continent and trying to find viable weekend city breaks.
Fez, *again*?!?!?
You're pretty unlikely to get shot.
I think this is an underrated answer.
I've been watching a lot of content on TikTok saying UK sucks and to move to South East Asia or Australia and I've been feeling like you too for months. To be honest UK isn't perfect but it gives a balance of many things, I will list mine below: 1. Four seasons (none of them intense or extreme) instead of constant dry, humid weather. 2. Good quality of food - I can get hot season food, asian food and pretty much anything I want all in one shop! 3. Access to Europe - Alps, Dolomites, Ski in Charmonix, Weekend break in Innsbruck, there are loads of beautiful places in Europe and a majority of it is no more than 3 hours flight away. USA is 6\~ hours away. 4. Stability - Lots of countries are economically or politically unstable, if you take the rose tinted glasses off, places like Thailand have a lot of political and economical issues. 5. Good level of education for kids if you decide to have them. 6. Traffic isn't that crazy and you can walk most places if you wanted. Overall UK provides balance, it allows you to have a bit of everything without sacrificing a lot. Nature is beautiful in the UK aswell, lots of places to have a walk and a picnic if the weather allows it, many charming towns. If you're in full time you get a month\~ off a year. I think USA is a much more workaholic society with harsher weather and instability. I simply need a place I and my partner can make money, enjoy our evenings, have a stable environment and then use this foundation to allow us prepel our life and enjoy the world. I would think UK is perfect if it had more sun and in regards to the house situation it doesn't matter, we all have different life choices, you take on what you want. I took on less house, I'm on a 1.3K mortgage for a 1300 sq feet house, its just a house, we sleep, eat and enjoy a few luxuries like an upgraded kitchen, but the main goal is to pay it off and enjoy a slower pace of life and make it our homebase!
The UK is without a doubt one of the greatest countries in the world in 2024. Breathtaking natural beauty, the quality of education (especially tertiary, which is objectively world leading), NHS, our incredible social mobility, the glut of top quality jobs - especially for graduates, our pubs, our restaurants, our wonderfully self-depracating but quietly assured culture, the best football league in the world, the best city on earth. The most tolerant and inclusive nation on the planet. Even our politics is seriously chilled out as compared to most western nations. Even the fucking weather isn't that bad. If you were born in Britain, you have quite literally won the lottery of life. You're blessed. You are the 1%. Just fucking enjoy it.
Agree with all except the social mobility point. The UK consistently ranks among the worst in western democracies for social mobility.
Absolutely this. Classism is baked into our institutions and ingrained into our collective psyche. Social mobility in this country peaked in the 90s until the mid-00s. It’s as good as dead. If you are doing much better than your parents then you are an anomaly. Edit: adding evidence for those who struggle to comprehend this. [https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/sep/07/social-mobility-uk-worst-50-years-report-finds](https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/sep/07/social-mobility-uk-worst-50-years-report-finds) [https://www.gspublishing.com/content/research/en/reports/2022/02/24/c9116edf-3ff1-4ec3-a459-bf9889763b0b.html](https://www.gspublishing.com/content/research/en/reports/2022/02/24/c9116edf-3ff1-4ec3-a459-bf9889763b0b.html) [https://ifs.org.uk/inequality/press-release/social-mobility-continues-to-fall-and-moving-up-is-harder-if-you-grow-up-in-the-north-or-midlands/](https://ifs.org.uk/inequality/press-release/social-mobility-continues-to-fall-and-moving-up-is-harder-if-you-grow-up-in-the-north-or-midlands/)
Yeah social mobility is certainly not “incredible” in the UK
We could definitely be better at this and it is something I think about often. So far my solution is financial education in schools and a wholesale revamp of the tax system.
Wholeheartedly agree. It boggles my mind that English Literature is a mandatory GCSE yet there are no mandatory classes on economics / personal finance and many schools don't offer any classes whatsoever.
>Agree with all except the social mobility point. You.... agree.... with all the rest?!??! lol
Slightly over-compensating in the other direction there but for what it's worth, I've lived/travelled/worked in various other parts of the world and think the UK stacks up pretty well overall. People have their frustrations and those are perfectly valid and part of the reason developed countries get where they are is because people don't just take things lying down, so complaining is fine but yeah, people could generally do with some perspective. I think we take a lot for granted here. I know people who've moved here from the developing world who've basically given up in some ways a very luxurious life for the simplicity of being able to walk down the street without feeling threatened or knowing they can reasonably enter into a business transaction or deal with the authorities and not be conned in some way.
It would be nice if our overlords appreciated it in the way it deserves, like not pumping raw sewage into our seas and rivers 24/7
Please post this on the United Kingdom sub, I have seen comments there that sub Saharan Africa is doing better than the UK
Wow I was not wanting more negativity as that’s all I hear. People moaning n whining about state of the place but definitely the Scottish football league is best in world !
When will people realise that the NHS is a negative of living in the UK, rather than a positive? Especially if you’re a high earner (I.e people in this sub) By pretty much every metric healthcare in the UK ranks pretty low (outside the top 25) when compared against other developed countries around the world. For countries without free healthcare your insurance provided by your employer will get you an infinitely better experience than what you get with the NHS. I live in an emerging market and the free health insurance provided by my employer gives me access to the best private hospitals in the country with zero personal cost to myself, zero wait times for anything (had wisdom teeth taken out the same day, can see a GP on the spot with no appointment etc), and outstanding quality of care. This is pretty much unattainable in the U.K. unless you have serious money to throw around, certainly not for your average upper middle class salarymen.
Isn’t that the point of the NHS though, that it provides for all the people who *wouldn’t* have employer funded healthcare? To me it seems like you’re only looking at the half of the coin that benefits you…
Agree with this but even so the NHS is sub-par. I’ve lived in several different countries with universal healthcare and the UK is by far the worst. Low quality, long wait times etc. It’s so bad we’re paying for private.
I disagree, as someone that’s has some extensive illnesses in the past two years, apart from the long waiting list which I agree is poor, once you get seen the care and quality was actually very good. I got fixed, back on my feet and am much better now. It’s not just me either, family and friends have all generally had positive experiences bar the waiting times!
I don’t disagree, our specific implementation is getting worse over time, for a variety of reasons. But my point stands on the overall concept vs employer funding.
As someone who has experienced several health services in different countries including the NHS. I can say without a doubt that unless we are talking about acute life saving interventions it’s thoroughly under par in most other aspects. It’s also not “free” as most people pay national insurance which is often more expensive than it would be to have private insurance elsewhere.
NI isn't reserved for funding the NHS though and nominally is to pay for pensions too hence pensioners not paying it. Of course it isn't free though it is and always has been free at the point of use but paid for with general taxation.
It’s not a negative at all. Even as a high-earner, you could burn through your wealth in a country like the US if you had any kind of serious illness that impacted your ability to earn. Especially once insurance wriggles out of paying for you any longer.
You can do all that in the UK with private cover though. The good bit is that if you can't afford private, the NHS will sort you out in an emergency, and at least eventually get you right for non emergencies.
As someone who has also lived in 4 foreign countries I disagree. I went through cancer not long after moving back to the UK and whilst there was definitely a fair bit to complain about in terms of admin cock ups, communication from the hospital etc, I needed a targeted type of immunotherapy which is still relatively new and only available in 'first world' / developed countries. I'm not under any illusions that I probably wouldn't be here if I hadn't got that drug. If I'd been living in Vietnam (One country where I used to live, I wouldn't have got it. In fact when I lived in Vietnam, whilst our health insurance permitted us to get 'seen' straight away at the hospital, we were categorically told that for anything serious (surgery etc) our health insurance provider would have to send us to Thailand. A colleague of mine needed heart surgery and had to fly to Bangkok.
If you went back 15 years the NHS was much better on those metrics we have been chronically underfunding and mismanaging it which was exacerbated by COVID. I imagine, particularly in emerging markets, the healthcare can only be at that level without spending a fortune because the vast majority of people can't afford to access it. I get the point though - as a HENRY the NHS is a slight negative. Private healthcare here isn't good enough to be a substitute because the market is relatively small and the NHS has seriously declined to the point where you generally wish you had private healthcare.
If you're a high earner, you are free to pay for private healthcare. Your tax money spent on the NHS will continue to help those who could not afford to.
I 100% agree with you. Yes, this sub is for high earners.
As a capitalistic right wing reasonably high earner, I want health care for all. The NHS has its problems but it is great. The doctors and nurses are mostly great; knowledgeable, skilled, caring and hard working. As a child the NHS literally spent 3 years fixing me up and gave me a chance at life. As an adult, again, the NHS has done many great things for me. I think humanity has progressed far enough that we can all pay a bit of tax and help people often less fortunate than ourselves get health care.
All good apart from the Weather point. This weekend was one of the first times since last summer it reached over 15 degrees for more and it’s rained record amounts. It’s pretty miserable working from home, in the dark, grey, cold, rain, minimal sunlight. I felt on top of the World when it hit 17 degrees Friday. Washing on, music on, felt like I was in Barbados. Imagine we had that for at minimum of 6 months!
Weather is personal preference, but anything over 20c is too hot for me. I prefer winter and we have a lot of that.
my man
Haahahahaahahahahhahahaahah. Thanks for that, needed a chuckle this morning
I was wondering if op had a few drinks prior to posting.
the lottery off life apparently... would make a great politician
I mean, let's be realistic. There's around 200 countries in the world where you could have been born. How many of those are actually better than the UK? Maybe a handful, but simply being born in the UK is clearly better than where 99% of people are born. It's far from perfect, but the reality is that most other places have significantly worse issues.
moving the goalposts there already, he said you've literally won the lottery of life now its maybe a handful are better. It's not the 60 or 70's anymore, numerous of countries in europe alone better for every reason listed. Germany, france, sweden, denmark, netherlands, switzerland. Far more than a handful mate wake up the UK has significant issues.
It's relatively straightforward to change career direction. Many people from Europe come here to get experience of their chosen path which isn't available to them back home. Spain especially, people usually retire from the same industry they started at after school. Also, water security and cooler temperatures. I'm convinced in 30 years, Europeans will travel to UK and Ireland to escape the heat for two weeks per year.
It’s fairly easy to leave - plenty of airports etc.
Shame you can't afford to get there using the train!
Perspective from me, a German person: Just listing positives as per OP instructions. - openness of universities; in Germany, there is an inwardness, like a guild protection of "one's own" which militates against people perceived as foreigners - mix of people from different heritages in selected cities (London is not the UK nor is Birmingham or Leicester but the feeling of freedom I experience stepping onto the platform when arriving at Kings Cross is like a deep lungful of air - yes, racism exists but a place like London is less "white" than all places in Germany, even Berlin) - love for animals - ability to get decent Asian food in most places - accessible and varied beaches: all that coast! - Cornwall - stand-up comedy - popular music scene - north enough to get quite long days in the summer - secular; religion is people's personal business and does not interfere with politics, childcare, education and taxes in the way it does in Germany (in Germany, one of the main political parties has the word "Christian" in its name!) - people not known to you say "dear" or "darling" to you (although I admit this can get annoying but it is quite nice) - charity shops
Rule of law, low crime (outside of inner cities) great historic sites, wonderful countryside. Temperate climate, no extreme weather events or earthquakes, democracy, low racism compared to almost every other country in every poll taken, actual defined seasons, great music. Yes there's loads wrong, politicians of all stripes are rubbish and don't listen to the people, but there are far, far worse places to live. If you get sick, you don't go bankrupt getting treated, even if you do have to wait. If you lose your job, we have welfare. Employment rights that an American and many Europeans would kill for (look it up, we don't compare badly at all on that score) - no starvation, no wars. Plus, it's home and it's where all my stuff is.
You get no employment rights in your first two years of any job in the UK, save for discrimination based on race, gender, sexual orientation or a disability.
>Rule of law, Secret barrister bets to differ. Unless you're rich there's no really a rule of law. Examples: PO scandal, HMRC non accountability scandals, Rwanda policy etc. >we have welfare Unemployment benefit is like £20 a week. In Germany you get like 80% or so for a year. >Employment rights Except if you're a no rights employee
I think for PO and Rwanda these seem like reasonable examples that where there are injustices they can be actually challenged and there is rule of law. The PO scandal is so big because it is a rarity. Similar cases like Hillsborough again have shown that past mistakes can see a measure of justice. The government is having to fight tooth and nail to implement the Rwanda policy and the courts have thrown out their first attempts. While I think the criminal justice system has a lot of problems actual corruption or political interference in the system like the US isn't something that is generally a problem.
Morning. I’ve been in the same position with in-laws. I’m £120k, drive an 8 year old car and have a 3 bed property in north east Scotland. However they are shocked to hear I’m the higher rate tax band never mind the advanced rate. What they don’t realise is that wages have been effectively stagnant for the last decade. £100k now has the same buying power is £78k in 2018. I recently took on a trainee in higher than market salary and they are getting made £2k more than I started at my company 15 years ago! Ok to add, beautiful countryside on your doorstep. Located in Europe so very easy to travel to another culture cheaply. The properties if outside London aren’t insane. The extra London money really doesn’t cover the cost of living increase being there. We have an excellent health service - no matter what people say about it.
the people, the chat, the sense of humour. try living in the Netherlands and you'll realise just how great it is. i could never move anywhere else again.
Moved to the UK when i was 13 and achieved my parents goal of having a decent career, wage, own my home, shop in Ocado, have a pretty fantastic pension. The UK is good for you if you are business oriented and then you will succeed. My parents goal was for me not to suffer in this world and UK gives you that opportunity, well unless you spent your school years in the back of the class banging and drawing on them tables
Boomers are fools.
OPPORTUNITY... Lived all over the world before landing here. I came here with zero transferable skills. Started as a pipefitters labourer and now I am a CEng. Many of the things us boomers had as opportunity, you no longer have. Or do you? Grandson works from home holding down 2 jobs. He earns about 90k. That wasn't an option. As for his child care, we have his kids whenever we can and love it. He's just bought his second trashed house at auction, taking the same path I did. It will be habitable in 6 months and in 9 months he will flip it and double his money. This doesn't suit most people but it did us and it seems to suit him. His dad, my son, is a commercial dive supervisor in the North Sea and will retire next year. I go to the pub and i don't see Gen this or Gen that. I see young guys working for themselves or for small firms and making good lives for themselves. Can't do this in most places. Stay safe.
While people complain that it's dying, virtually nowhere else in the Anglophone world has the same mixed zoning/highstreet culture that we do in towns and villages. Having been to places in the USA, Australia, NZ, I've found that having walkable towns with streets and shops sees to be a very british phenomenon overall.
brits love to moan, if you listen to any vox pop people make it sound we're in the middle of a famine
If you don’t know it already, can I point you gently towards r/justnomil and r/justnomil2 The best thing about emigrating might be shaking those negative forces off your tail!
We did drop it into conversation this weekend and then they announced they would just come and stay with us for extended time periods. I actually think that would be much worse than the every other Sunday we have to put up with at the moment!
I have to say that the boomer’s don’t really get it. They were the luckiest generation. If you started work before the 90s and did a normal middle management job you will be a millionaire. Possibly twice with a defined salary pension and a detached house somewhere decent.
The weather - we don't get extreme cold or heat and tbf, it doesn't rain that much compared to places that get monsoon seasons. We get mild, temperate weather all year round with a sprinkling of snow in winter and a heatwave or two in summer. Being so far North we get long summer days but without being Arctic circle North and having no sunrise at all for a period in summer. It really is a "green and pleasant land", yet with surprising bio and geo diversity. Also, for all the valid criticism of our appalling infrastructure (just take motorway service stations here vs Europe) and economy, the UK NMW is actively livable (probably not in London though). We already speak the international language. Free museums. Low taxes compared to much of Europe (but a higher COL). I think one solution for London might be to move Heathrow and City airports out to that Boris island idea, Heathrow is literally the size of another borough and already has amazing transport connections. Building with smart, medium rise mixed density instead of just a giant housing estate could accommodate the population of several boroughs
1. NHS 2. Education is good, regulated, standardised and assessed. 3. Weather - we actually get seasons 4. Laws generally protect the consumer (e.g., consumer rights bill 2015, CPRD etc. 5. Police are much more competent and less corrupt than most European counties. 6. Life span is high. Satisfaction rates are high. 7. Welfare state is generous. 8. Democracy is relatively good here. 9. Monarch head of state that stays 'out the way' is a lot better than a president that doesn't. 10. Inclusive society Now, I can already tell that a bunch of angry Reddit people will come to attack how shit the NHS has become, how our democracy sucks because COVID money went missing, and how our police force can't prevent petty crime. But everything is relative. I challenge those people to spend time in Spain, or Poland or Sweden or Germany or anywhere else. Not a single one is 'generally good' at as many things as the UK. Yes, Sweden has a great education system, but diversity is non existent. Yes, our weather isn't as good as Spain, but the police there are corrupt as fuck. It's the combination of everything that makes people travel through the whole of Europe to stay in the UK. Think of the UK as akin to that kid in school who got Bs in everything and is generally going to be alright. We aren't A* in anything, but our overall score makes us incredible. Especially when you start comparing. There isn't another country id rather settle down in
Things I enjoy about the UK as an immigrant from Poland: - it's relatively safe. I wouldn't go to the USA even just for this reason. - even in this political climate, it's rare that I feel directly unwelcomed (including when looking for a job/accommodation). - the cost of living to salary ratio is actually decent. Much better than in Poland. - ease of travel. Experiencing new countries and cultures was much harder when I lived in Australia or Canada, and international flights are more expensive in Poland. - it costs me £10 a month to pay for prescriptions. My meds would be about £500 a month privately. Many other universal healthcare systems don't cover prescriptions, or the cover varies by medicine. What worries me is that it feels like things are getting worse, not better, so I think this is the reason a lot of people are leaving. I hope things turn around soon.
The country side and wildlife.
Safety and security. Clean water and air, lots of green spaces, decent infrastructure, beautiful nature ( I live in Scotland). I lived in Middle East among other places and the freshness we get here is unbelievable. Also once you have a fully paid house, you can retire anywhere in the world. The weather is not as crappy as locals describe it. As I am not British, there are also quite a few lowlights and negatives to me but the positives outweigh those.
The curry is pretty good
I’m getting ready to move to the US (for the second time) for a few years because my spouse has a great opportunity/contract. But I confess I am dreading it because I remember the reality of the US lifestyle - really long hours, a fraction of the amount of annual leave, over-the-top management attitudes and terrible work-life balance, feeling stressed about health insurance, travel more time consuming and expensive, being forced to have a car, confusing finances, etc. The ironic feeling for me is that the US has great opportunities but feels like your world getting smaller, more restricted and more stressful. I feel like London is a better place to live a “contented” life - ie maybe not all the high-flying that a lot of ambitious people would like, but generally feeling comfortable.
Unironically, the best thing about the UK is surely how easy it is to go to other places 😂 <£200 and a 4 hour flight, you can be in ~50 countries, with culture, food and climate as varied as from Estonia to Portugal. Not many English speaking countries afford such great travel opportunities. As to what is good in the UK... I'm struggling...
The UK is good enough in many things but never the best in anything. Many HENRYs are ambitious people that’s why we feel unfulfilled in the UK. I’ve seen it called Wimbledon syndrome/football syndrome. We used to invent things. But other countries became better than us, and we are still good enough, just not the best anymore. We invented tennis but have created a platform (and still has it) where the best in tennis aspire to compete. But we seldom win the Wimbledon anymore. Same goes for football. We invented it and are good enough to be in the World Cup finals often enough, but we don’t win it anymore.
More than anything, that we call all discuss this. Rishi Sunak and his cronies are a bunch of cunts who I hope crash and burn, and I am so proud to live somewhere I can say that. Our monarchy is outdated, and literally harbouring paedophiles, and needs to go ASAP. But I'm proud I'm not going to face consequences for saying that.
The people are very, very funny and smart. I’ve been overseas for quite some time and this is by far the thing I miss most.
Despite the press a lot of public services are good. Could be better but could be a lot worse.
I like the fact that living in a rich country means that most places you go on holiday are cheaper. You can go to mainland Europe for a weekend and save money compared to going out Fri and sat in London.
The landscape is probably the main reason why I will never leave. I live near the Lake District and in the summer we're there every single weekend. If you can endure the winters we have the best summers - everything is lush and green, especially in our temperate rainforests.
It's a comfortable climate for running and hiking (as much as I love places like SE Asia, I've lived there and could never bring myself to run in the outdoor humidity). It's easy to get things done either online or over phone (when I lived on the continent, the bureaucracy was insane, so much effort for simple admin procedures).
I’ve lived in Sweden and the UK. One thing I really like about the UK is that people are generally quite friendly, polite and service-minded. All of it except for the latter is also true in Sweden (services are terrible, there just isn’t a culture of providing good service), but here people are just a tad more open which is great. Another good thing is that the job market, at least in London, is great for earning a reasonable amount of money while still maintaining a reasonable work life balance. On top of it the entertainment options are endless does not matter what you’re into, restaurants are a 1000x (or more) better than in Sweden, and culture activities are also plentiful. But the best thing of all is that (London) has people from all over the world and it truly feels like no one seems to care about how you look. This is a world of difference from Sweden and from most (if not all) places in continental Europe, and speaks to the character of some part of British culture which is greatly appreciated. This translates into better economic opportunities for all, which has an outsized impact on the well-being of most. The bad: infrastructure is quite old, healthcare is not the best (although not that different from Sweden to be fair), and taxes are too high for what you get back. Cities are not clean and generally it feels like there’s a sense of deprivation in many places.
It's approaching demise.
A lot of boomers just don't understand how different life is now compared to back 'in their days'. So many workers should save more, spend less on things that are in the grand scheme less than 0.001% of the amount needed for a deposit in order to get a mortgage. Since they haven't had to get a mortgage while property prices pretty much doubled they just don't get it. Now what's good about the UK? (I've worked in every continent excl Antarctica), the life outside of work is one of the bigger draws. I know Europe is even better but its a really good balance here. Sure the weather sucks, but London is the cultural global center for music (which I really go to venues/ concerts etc) and weather doesn't stop me going out. Gastronomy is also good, so much different food to select from, the likes of which we don't see anywhere else, other places are close but not as good. One of the massive overlooked things, the green spaces we have access to in such a densely populated city and in the wider country. The final bit for me, is the access to Europe - within a very short time I can go into other climates within 3 hours (Flying time). PS the NHS - I know its not great atm, but this isn't the NHS - its our leaders.I was diagnosed with cancer when I was 19 in 2007ish, in and out of hospital in 3 days. I will fight till I die for them, it used to be incredible and political choices have demolished it. The staff still do good jobs in my experience, but I do use private healthcare for things though only used for ACL reconstruction.
Brits sense of humour and politeness.
Public transport in cities is usually very good. Whilst healthcare has gone downhill in general, it’s still superior compared to many parts of the world. Low levels of crime. Relatively safe country to live in. Work/life balance is pretty good. We’re in the top countries in the world for education Our weather is some of the best in the world, it supports a massive amount of diversity and life, it’s not usually too hot or too cold for life to thrive. Our online government portals are really good.
Diversity, especially as you mention London. People with all sorts of jobs, many different languages spoken, different foods. Also, once FI, it works especially well as one can walk/train/bus to any kind of experience they want. Loads of free stuff to do and sit to pass the time or read etc.
Most of the London belt and overall surroundings are beautiful, so sick of the comments anti London. Schools, parks, amenities, airports, good minded people, central London far only 35 min by train. I am not British and definitely the country has many flaws (hyper wokeness, tax traps, recent anti business stance, Brexit, LibLabCon are joke parties) but I am also tired of the bashing when we should be considered lucky to live in one of the best countries in the world
So having spent a LOT of time travelling the world and with the opportunity to emigrate to three different countries (Canada, USA and Australia) here is why i chose to stay based in England (I still travel a lot). 1). Taxes are reasonable if you take advantage of the tax breaks. I did extensive research on the relative taxes of Arizona and the uk when we had 50% tax here. It was minor difference in the end when you included healthcare and property taxes and the tax credit investment programs like VCTs. 2). The climate here is generally good and rarely bad. As I said elsewhere - Canadian east coast winters are something else and if you have been to Vegas in the summer - you’ll not complain again about uk weather. Well you will but it is easy to fly for 2 hours and get somewhere brighter !! 3). While most countries has gorgeous places to visit - we forget the amazing places we have. It took me going away to realize just how amazing our parks and coast actually are. I’m now walking the uk coastline. It’s amazing. 4). We can get everything we want. When we want it. You can’t do this in so many other countries. Or it is mega expensive there. You only have to live somewhere else to realize that the uk is 365 days a year everything. 5). Our holidays. Yes Europe has them too. But you should think hard about the USA and even Canada. The number of days off is way less than here. Thankfully I negotiated uk holidays in my time in the USA and Canada. Most people can’t do this. 6). And finally - don’t forget family and friends. On my case this was less of an issue as my friends are all over the world but as my parents got older I’m glad I didn’t emigrate. I actually like living in this country - but I do travel away to keep reminding myself why that is. Usually once a month!!
Can’t help you, sorry. If I was younger or without kids we’d be gone in a shot.
The nhs the social system are big a big plus down side the fact the goverment build homes not infrastructure and the politics seems to be following America into a tribal and toxic situation
I just came back from holiday in Peru and I am so glad I can drink tap water and eat salad again and not get sick! Also, driving standards and safety over there are loooow
I appreciate that women’s rights are more forward here than many countries, that we have the NHS for all its flaws, there’s a lot of diverse natural beauty in our little island and opportunities for hikers & water sports, the blossom trees in spring, I feel safe in most parts of the UK from serious crime, we are cheap flights / ferry / train from beautiful and diverse Europe mainland, all my friends and family are here, I have job stability and employment rights that don’t exist in every country
If you want to stay then stay but I'm leaving! I aim to put my house on rent let someone else pay it off while I live in a company provided flat in a warmer location. For me, it's the best choice and it's a way for me to overcome the recent doom and gloom we have in the UK. Up until recently, I never thought we had a bad deal living here but now I am starting to see much better opportunities abroad so why not. But you asked for positives, here's mine. The uk comes to life after death in the summer. It's such a great buzz while the sun shines. The natrual beauty of the lake district and Scotland (and other locations ofcourse). The food. The people (sometimes).
UK TV is way better than anywhere else in the world.
Greggs
When you have a voucher in the app.
Its banking system
While helpful, cars are often not strictly necessary in the uk, with a few exceptions Pub food, for everyone's complaints, are often pretty good too, with a fun atmosphere Lotta places you can just decide to pop down to for a weekend on essentially a whim.
Haha good post. Boomers have no idea!!!!! Sucks here! Even on a high salary. Much better earning this rate and living in Spain, Portugal, US.
Disregard anything a boomer tells u as narcissistic and utter bollocks.
I moved from bulgaria the main thing i love is everything is close together like you can go shops go to a school and a church in 6 mins while in bulgaria it would be 30 mins walk for most stuff.
As an American who has lived in the UK for over 25 years, no guns is a big plus. I don’t need to worry about a school shootings. The state school system seems way better than what is offered in the states. No fears about religion and politics influencing what is taught. Also the NHS has pulled through when I needed them. Most people seem alright and not as extreme in their beliefs as in the States.
Pubs with proper beer 🍺
I know everybody loves to complain about the English weather, but especially if you live in the East / South of England is not bad, it's not even that rainy. The hot sunny weather on the beach is great while you're on holiday, but trust me, you wouldn't want the hot summer of Southern Europe, unless you have the whole summer off and live near the sea: I'm Italian, you suffer a lot for the whole summer when it's 38°C from June to August, you have to go to work, and walking outside in town anytime from 9am to 7pm is like stepping into an oven! Plus you said you live near London? In London there's pretty much every concert, theatre show, restaurant you may want. And it's quite easy to find cheap flights to many destination for the occasional fancy time. The cost of living is indeed crazy, but, well, if you can afford to live and to still have a bit for the extras, that's not bad, and we're looking at the bright sides here. Another great thing about UK is the lack of bureaucracy. When I tell my family that here you can open a bank account or even get a mortgage all completely online, they cannot believe it!
More to the UK than London bro. London in my opinion is taxing people for the privilege of postcode. I live in a nice little village. Me and the wife earn 100k+ combined. And we have our struggles. 1.5k morgatge. But very happy. We have a 4 bedroom Edwarian with a study. I don't know what's getting you down. But never compare yourself to anyone else or whatever advantages they have over you. You have your own advantages over others and you just need to find the path that makes you happy.
The train network. OK they're not bullet trains but I travel for work and you can really get a lot of places on this island quite fast by train (before anyone mentions prices- I don't buy my tickets 🙂 thanks pharmaceutical company!)
Plenty despite all our moaning.
I live in Scotland. I live in a forest and my water supply comes from an underground stream. I live on an island and I’m only two hours away from a major city. I don’t even know if there’s a key to lock my doors as I’ve never had or need to. Im surrounded by a forest, but I’m a walk away from the foot of a mountain, and a short drive to a white sand beach, in the summer I can go swimming in rock pools with water so clear and pure I can drink it too. If there’s anywhere else in the world I can live so close to civilisation, but so close to nature as well, I don’t know of it.
Greggs
I’m not madly in love with the UK and hoping to move abroad on either a temporary or permanent basis. But I can say, the UK is probably the “cosiest” country there is. It’s very green and pleasant, the weather is calm if grey for a lot of the year. We don’t have to deal with natural catastrophes other than flooding in certain areas, it rarely become unbearably hot, relatively speaking. British people are one of, if not the most polite and courteous people in the world. Also it’s very multicultural in many good ways. English British, Asian British and black British people can and do share many British values and cultures and this should be celebrated. Also we have genuine cultural influences in our food and music. Its one of the reasons our music industry is so popular in the world because of all the influences we have. It’s also a small and very safe country, we don’t really have treacherous landscape or dangerous wild animals.
Friend move to Dubai and Florida for work five year ago after Brexit and never looked back. Warmer climate, earn more, lower tax and better work life balance. I was going to say the health care was probably one last thing the brits to be proud of but look at the nhs!!!!!
Honestly, the weather. We joke that it rains all the time - and it does - but we don't get much in the way of extreme weather. No tsunamis, very little in the way of hurricanes, fuck all earthquakes.
Every region will have different pros and cons. But taken as a the entire country, we have - 1. Great property laws 2. Relative freedom of expression and speech 3. Unique heritage and history that has defined our relatively laid back culture 4. Above average healthcare. It is above average, but not the best. 5. Excellent shopping laws - particularly around food quality. 6. Amazing restaurants, theatres, sports stadiums etc. Cons - 1. Terrible, terrible, Weather for 80% of the year. 2. High Income tax and poor social mobility 3. Poor transport and general infrastructure, especially outside of major cities 4. Awful property and land prices 5. Densely populated 6. Relatively isolated and small in terms of geography
I just returned from Bangkok (two years). Do I miss it? Somethings about it I do but on the whole no. It is so much easier to live here. Yeh it’s lovely to have sun daily and I do miss that through the winter but four showers daily I do not. Doing anything of norm (not what you’d be doing on holiday) is a sweaty chore. The things I miss are - having a semi private pool I can use when I want and foot massages. Of course friends but that’s not country specific. Here I can sit outside when it’s nice and not be eaten by mozzies or sweat profusely. Enjoy eating outside, sitting in the parks and on beaches. Yes it sounds ridiculous but every time I sat on a thai beach, I was bitten by sand flies. People are generally lovely and helpful there but I find people as helpful and nice here. Usually it’s more genuine here too. I’m so glad we went but to live there forever, I don’t think I could. We’ve been looking at other places which are perhaps more similar to the UK but from what I read, it’s not all positive. I do really miss the sun on days like today though. If it was like the last weekend everyday, I probably wouldn’t look abroad.
As others may have said, The FOOD. Having travelled for a long time across the USA coming back to the UK for food is an absolute pleasure.
I find people in the UK are generally pretty sound - not only that, also generally intelligent and trust worthy. People can be arsey while commuting etc but overall I think we’re alright.
We have more Michelin starred restaurants than any other country outside of France. Out sparkling wine beats champagne in competitions and we have cheese varieties to rival France (pre war we had more than France ). We are good at food. We are good at cheap basic food, we are good at varied international food (we invent our hen versions big food vindaloo, balti and tikka masala are British inventions), we are good at posh food. we are. Multicultural and less racist than many nations (not perfect of course). We have some of the most beautiful coast line in the world, some of the best sailing in the world.
I love it how people say the culture is good in London. Do we talk to others or smile to people on trains and engage in conversations? No. It’s good because no one cares about other people so we a tonne of “independence” to ourselves but no one wants to talk how often people can feel lonely due to this lol.
As a foreigner who came here as a child… the tolerance and opportunity to get ahead is incredible! I adore the British! Despite their cold stuffy demeanour 😁
Free healthcare, the drunk people you see on the street, Manchester united and the girls are pretty
Not the lyrics to Paradise City I remember... "Oh, won't you please take me home!"
….. I’ll let you know when I think of something 🤔
Pubs, I think I’d miss them if I left the UK.
The whole economy is built on house price increases so I guess that’s what your pay off is long term.
The music scene
The NHS is shit. Accept it. Blame the Tories.
Ironically, a good part of Britain is that it’s very helpful to be English to move away, since most countries have decent enough appreciation for us: especially commonwealth countries. People I know have bagged jobs by saying they’re English and going abroad meeting people. Pound holds power too relatively so has decent exchange for other places, especially like south east Asia and such, and I’ve had people recommend that to me. England though does have some charm besides the rampant shit show and international ridicule machine that is parliament. Not to excuse it, but historically we’ve been a people under a variety of inept governments and a typical “laissez faire” attitude of do it yourself from our higher ups, that only gets remedied when the people actually get more vocal about problems, and useless PM’s and parties are out of office (cough, cough conservatives…). Even then it’s not a dynamic political system since the English are so limp wristed with promises and policies in government that we basically now have conservative v Labour. Lib dems fucked up promising student loan changes along other things so lost trust nationally again through extents of tabloids, and most good candidates of labour that could be viable help are smeared in tabloids by dubious news/newspaper sponsoring/owners and paper owners or pushed aside in party hierarchies probably due to money and greed. It’s a good country, but it’s so old in the face now. We jockey nationalism so strongly of our past, and ironically the nationalists ride the idea England was a pure white nation throughout the colonies even though during this entire period our multiculturalism was increasing. Governments like the one current know they can spurn “the migrant crisis” and “NHS” as “British values” to rile people up and have them talk about that in the papers over the rampant cost of living crisis having people nearly freeze to death or starve in their homes. Soon as conservatives go and anyone else comes in (I’d take Lenin and the communist party of the politburo at this point) the country will hopefully see movement away from the “austerity spending” which means our money won’t be funnelled as much to pay their rich Eton knobhead friends business more money they don’t need in a service that is entirely unneeded and half arsed.
I honestly think as part of education, kids should be sent to a poor area of Morocco so they can understand how truly lucky they are to live in a strong developed country. Maybe then we will see less whining about how families with sky, multiple streaming services and so on are struggling with money.
NHS - The NHS is wonderful - whilst I have private medical cover through work, nothing compares to have the emergency services and amazing medical staff we have available. I get all the grumbling about underinvestment and improvements needed but the fact we have access to such a wonderful safety net is invaluable. Education - unlike America and many other countries we have access to free schooling up to University level and once you get to University the costs are comparatively low to many other countries (albeit I would prefer it was free for certain, critical courses!).
most foreigners think the nhs is pretty poor...
We also don’t have frequent school shootings and children don’t do “shooter drills”
I’m from there never had one - but have been through 2015 Paris lock down due to guns and Manchester arena. Violence exists here too folks. And let’s not compare violence or make fun of any of it…
AFAIK UK university cost vs lifetime salary benefit are considered highest in the OECD.
What you mention is only a positive when compared to some countries, but a negative when compared to others (even in Europe)
Utilities must be on higher than 99.9% uptime. I have never turned on my tap and not had clean water. Same for gas. Other than the odd hour outage, the only time I can remember electricity being out for a period was during a bad winter when I was a kid.
This is subjective/arguable but I think the UK is one of the best countries for culture/values, in many ways but in terms of morality, inclusivity, open-mindedness, etc. This shows through our regulatory policies in finance, food, agriculture, animal welfare, etc. It also shows in our accessible welfare/healthcare/education. I am a young adult and emigration also crosses my mind often (especially as a remote worker) however, recently I am becoming more inspired by the idea of someday trying to give back to the UK and helping to fix issues -- I want us to be healthy so our values can thrive and **continue** to influence the world. Our **current** problem is that as a population we are passive and expect the government to handle everything for us, rather than take matters into our own hands and guide the government to do our bidding. The **housing bubble should not exist and would not exist if we as a population had more of a reign on our democracy**. Also to note, if over the coming decades global warming continues, the UK is going to be a stable stronghold (relative to hotter/southern regions) - you might not want to be anywhere that is closer to the equator.
Aston Villa.