Uk...bad place to live??

[BigonaBianchi]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2010/sep/22/happy-dont-live-uk


This article is two years old however what do we think...does it hold true today?

I'm thinking it's all well and good when you simply look at the stats but just to upsticks and go live in say france or italy involves a massive life and culture change, language barriers and all kinds of other stuff.

There's not much else stopping me though.

 

[Brandane]

IF it was practical, I would be out of here tomorrow. I know the following points are not unique to Britain and there are a lot worse places to live; but there are a lot better, too:

It never stops raining where I live (what's a drought?).
Our town centres are becoming boarded up ghost towns inhabited by pound shops, tanning salons, Big Issue sellers and drug dealers.
Jobs are very hard to come by, and those that are available pay a pittance and expect you to kiss a$$ for the privilege of working for them.
The road surfaces are a disgrace, some downright dangerous for cycling.
There is way too much traffic on the roads.
Petty rules are enforced to the max, while real crime goes undetected or lightly punished; the justice system is a joke.
Yob culture.
Political parties who promise everything and deliver nothing.
A general head in the sand attitude from people who think Britain is wonderful; WAKE UP!!

Having lived abroad for much of my youth, and then spent a few years in the Merchant Navy traveling the world, I personally think Britain is far down the league table of places to live.
Having said all that, the scenery in parts of Scotland is second to none, and on the occassional day when the weather is nice it really is hard to beat and all the minus points fade into the distance.

 

[Globalti]

Yes, our roads are crap. Yes, our cities are full of drunks, druggies and SS dossers. Yes our people have a miserable arse-covering jobsworth entitlement attitude. Yes it rains a lot. Yes the roads are congested.

BUT.... Britain has a level of culture (arts, music, theatre, TV, literature, film) that is unsurpassed in any other country. Britain has more charities and do-good and consumer protection organisations than any other country. Britain has the world's best medical care available free at the point of delivery; if I came home from Africa with a rare disease I know where I would want to be.

I hate those articles that knock Britain and trot out all kinds of statisticians' lies - yes, taxation is high here but on the whole most of the money gets spent for the public's benefit, not stolen by politicians. Maybe we do work longer hours than the Spanish but at least I can sleep at night and not be woken up by un-silenced motor scooters racing up and down my street all night while my windows are open.

FWIW I speak regularly with an elderly French lady friend in Paris and she is in complete despair; she and her friends and family think France is finished and would all emigrate if they could find somewhere suitable to go. Nothing new there then; the grass is always greener....

I've lived and worked in France and Spain for around 4 years of my life, long enough to know that it is very difficult indeed to move over completely to a new culture. It's OK to go and live on the Riviera or the Costa where there are massive British expat communities but not many people can change successfully 100% to another culture.

 

[the_mikey]

BUT.... Britain has a level of culture (arts, music, theatre, TV, literature, film) that is unsurpassed in any other country. Britain has more charities and do-good and consumer protection organisations than any other country. Britain has the world's best medical care available free at the point of delivery; if I came home from Africa with a rare disease I know where I would want to be.

I think the culture argument is, well, arguable, the health service is good, but I feel Britain should be much more friendly and positive, but it's not, we're not a collection of 3rd world countries, but life is often complicated, expensive and unpleasant, not a recipe for a happy nation.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

I'm white. I'm employed. I'm healthy. I'm psuedo-middle class. I live in a small, increasingly multi-cultural, town in SE England. I work in another one. My Aged P gets his healthcare free at the point of delivery. As does bonkers M-i-L. My kids got educated free at the point of delivery. 50% of my children are in permanent employment. We haven't had a civil war for hundreds of years. We've never had a Fascist government. Though our political system is polarised the manifestation is via civilised debate not force. QED I live in the best of all possible worlds. End of.

All the negative stuff the media wibbles on about happens for sure, it rarely if ever touches my life directly or even indirectly (how's that for tempting fate) and sh1t happens sur le continent too.

Folk who are miserable in Blighty will be the same folk if they live elsewhere, with better weather or whatever, and most likely they will still be miserable.

 

[Paul J]

Thought about emigrating in the past when I had the money to do so. I wouldn't move to Europe as I think the same problems exist as we have here. Scotland has it problems like the rest of the UK but the roads have fewer cars. I'd forgotten what queuing was until I moved back to England.

I think Britain can be 'Great' again but without massive policy changes, I am afraid it will continue to slip down the list of best place to live.

 

[MarkF]

Everything in the UK, so the media would have us believe, is "going down the pan", "not what it was", "worse than yesteryear" and yet, everywhere else just gets better and better. The UK is great place to live, work and do business IMO.

 

[rusky]

Since I don't speak a 2nd language I feel that I would need to move somewhere that spoke English.

Although there are lots of things wrong with this country, I think there are plenty of other countries that have other issues/problems that are overlooked.

 

[buddha]

Who does the best beer and fish & chips?
Otherwise (apart from the weather), if something's cr@p we can always do something about it to change things.

 

[Silver Fox]

I can think of worse places to live than the UK and one or two better.

The only problem with moving abroad is that there's too many bloody foreigners.

 

[ianrauk]

I can think of worse places to live than the UK and one or two better.

The only problem with moving abroad is that there's too many bloody foreigners.

And a cuppa tea just does not taste right anywhere else in the world apart from Blighty..

 

[slowmotion]

If France is so marvelous and the UK such rubbish, why has the number of French people living here increased every year for the last twenty? Are they stupid?

 

[User169]

Who does the best beer and fish & chips?
Otherwise (apart from the weather), if something's cr@p we can always do something about it to change things.

Beer and chips = Belgium

 

[MontyVeda]

And a cuppa tea just does not taste right anywhere else in the world apart from Blighty..

it does if you take your own tea bags!

I was quite enjoying living here in spite of all it's faults and short comings 'til I read that survey... seems I'm wrong again

 

[tyred]

The grass is always greener on the otherside, etc.