Would you leave the UK now if you could?

[JamSandle]

I've been thinking this...with how things are going in the UK, would you leave if you could, or encourage your kids to?

I know nowhere is perfect but just curious of peoples thoughts.

Has anyone on this thread who is leaving said where they are going? Curious. There are lots of threads like these, but I rarely see destinations mentioned.

We moved to Spain as soon as it became clear that Brexit was really going ahead. I can't imagine moving back, despite the challenges of starting over while learning a new language. The thing that really seals it is knowing that if I'm ill here, I can easily get a doctors appointment and if there's an emergency, an ambulance will come straight away. The state of the NHS frightens me at the moment. There's also a lot of anti social behaviour in my home town and I can't stand the thought of my children growing up around that. I agree that no country is perfect but I feel much better off here

We have two possibilities to move to. One a definite as DH is from there and his family are still there and one where his parents were born and again, lots of family.

However, both places can be politically unstable and have high costs and large populations. The weather is better is one, but the education (IMO) is poorer. Our children would have to do army service.

The other is on the other side of the world, a long way from anywhere! Language barrier for me.

I don't think we'll move due to the children's ages and education. I do worry about this country though. The inequality and worsening lifestyles for so many.

I live & work in the middle east

There's also a lot of anti social behaviour in my home town and I can't stand the thought of my children growing up around that

Its massively on the rise where I am too, in fairly prosperous north Hampshire. Gangs of kids roaming nearby estates, throwing bricks through peoples windows and cars, and running off. Police can’t respond as they’re overstretched already. I really fear for my autistic ds10 and how he will cope with it as he grows up.

It’s amazing the damage that has been done in the last decade, if you’d have asked this question in 2012, people would ask what on earth you were talking about. Yet here we are.

This is what having a one dimensional, far right government that is UKIP in all but name does to a country. Swivel-eyed, isolationist and backward thinking. There were never any sunlit uplands, just years of slow decline. And that’s what we’ve got now.

yes, absolutely. If it wasn't for the fact that my health isn't very good & private health insurance abroad would likely cost me a small fortune

No. I left for an EU country. I came back after 2 years. Grass isn't always greener.

Thank you! I know. It's just so hard for so many people and is going to get harder - it feels as though we have this sociopathic Government and no way out. I appreciate the countryside, the coast near where I live and all my friends and family, but I just can't see how things are going to ever get better

No we've thought about it and as dual passport holders we could go to the EU tomorrow. We would miss our friends and family too much. We generally don't rely on the government to much and have transferable skills if ever wanted to upsticks. Our jobs are on the wanted list for Australia which is discussed every winter. We have private medical insurance and could private school DS but currently looking at an outstanding faith school.

To me government provided service are becoming a second class service so we are trying to up our take home to opt out of it more and more. We are looking to be totally off grid with solar and ground source heat. I love my petrol car, but electric would be an option if we wanted to opt out of the oil prices.

Interestingly DH has moved half our saving to US dollars in the past year which looks like a wise move considering the current issues.

I hope the UK can reform but it's looking more and more likely we have become accustomed to a level of care/service we can't afford

it feels as though we have this sociopathic Government and no way out I agree with this. Waiting another two years for a general election feels painful given how chaotic and unstable this lot are.

I'm disabled and on benefits but I'd probably think of moving to Germany if I could. I don't know what their politics and government are like though. I studied German at school and have been there a few times but other than 'liking' the country as I saw it and thinking they were a strong nation (don't know what I'm basing that on).

Not right now but thinking about it. I've lived in other countries before and travelled a lot. Quite frightened about the future of the UK and not sure id want to start a family here. Just mulling it over at the moment as there's no quick fix.

I fear greatly for the most vulnerable in this country.

Our medium term plan is to move to the US but that’s more because of personal circumstances than because we think the UK is crap. It isn’t at all. It has problems just the same as anywhere else. And I find it so bizarre that “yes, I can’t stand how racist and bigoted the UK has become since Brexit” always arises in these threads. Right wing governments are being elected across Europe. There are clear reasons why.

I sort of feel like im at a point where I can take a risk and get out or stay but if I stay things may get harder here and I may regret it. That said nowhere is perfect and every rose has its thorns. I just want to live somewhere where I can have a quality of life and a bright future for my family. But is this anywhere right now?

No. I want to leave the city for a quieter town though. I know this country has some really awful problems and the political landscape is bleak, but there are people in my union, and my community, who are striving to make things better.

Scandinavia is often much praised on this threads, but I saw a Twitter thread the other day where an Asian-American woman who has been there 3 years says she is leaving because of constant racism and abuse. Can't unearth it now.

This is not to say the UK is fantastic, just that what suits one person may not suit another.

@MagpiePi

The weather should be the least of your worries, it's come on in leaps and bounds with Global Warming!

No, having just moved back from a European country after 4 years I know the grass is not always greener. I would encourage my son to live abroad though when he's older because it's great to experience living in another culture and opens your eyes (and can also make you very grateful for things you didn't appreciate about your own culture beforehand).

I would go abroad in a heartbeat. My DH and I could just about raise enough money for a small house and an acre of two of land. I would happily go to Portugal or Greece and grow my own fruit and veg and raise my own animals for food. I would love to do this in the uk but proper prices are mental. The government is an absolute laughing stock . Our prospects as a main are very miserable. At least in Portugal or Greece we have sunlight, nice weather, can swim outdoors for more than 6-8 weeks a year.

I would happily go to Portugal or Greece and grow my own fruit and veg and raise my own animals for food.

What’s preventing you from doing this in the UK? Many rural parts of northern England, Wales and Scotland are affordable enough that you could buy a small holding and raise e.g. poultry and pigs and grow seasonal fruit and vegetables.

If that poster is anything like me there’s not quite same attraction of growing a more limited range of fruit and veg in a UK climate (esp a Scottish one - we don’t exactly have many months of sunshine and warm weather up here)

Yes, I guess the weather makes a difference. But the parts of Greece and Portugal where one could buy an affordable small holding aren’t without their problems, even if the sun does shine more often.

We have the option to go tomorrow, and I lived overseas for years and years so very used to it.

The answer from us is absolutely not.

Every country has its problems, some are far, far worse than ours. Even among our wealthier neighbours. France for instance, Spain and Italy all have significantly bigger problems than us. I would not wish for the dc to grow up in the US and Aus and NZ just too quiet for our teens now they are older. The unis are world class here, and options for future careers and travel. It would be madness for us to leave now. There is something very warm and cosy about the UK that I missed so much when we left.

So a definite no.

Education and health care is not free in the UK, it is paid for through the taxation system and paid for by the people.