So what in the UK DOES work really well? I can't think of much!

[QueenofTheBorg]

HMRC are turning their phones off in a minute
The roads are a state almost everywhere
The NHS is underfunded and broken
Schools are crumbling, there aren't enough teachers, unsurprisingly
Railways and a lot of public transport doesn't work well
Councils are able to go bankrupt, I'm not sure how or why
Shoplifting is rarely prosecuted
Rape is pretty much a non crime, the prosecution rate is so low
The police are misogynistic and don't respond to many crimes (shoplifting for eg)
Food prices are ridiculous, as are petrol prices
The cost of living crisis has affected millions
Interest rates mean lots of people can't afford their houses
There are strikes left right and centre
Prisons are nearly full
Courts are backlogged by cases anyway
There's not enough support for anyone with mental health issues

Nothing seems to work does it?

Or are there some things that work amazingly well in the UK? If so, what?

Is this years of Tory underinvestment in infrastructure? Some of this I think is due to the Ukraine war but not all of it. What do you think?

Emergency services in a crisis are excellent. A friend was involved in a serious road accident last year. How he survived the actual crash is a miracle but the fact he is still alive today is down to the amazing skill of trauma specialists who went to the scene and stabilised him enough to get him to hospital.

He was in an induced coma for weeks but with fabulous care and physio he is now home and living independently again,

we are fortunate to have such an amazing service.

Sarcasm.

❤️ eGovernment inc Government Gateway + DVLA process for car tax plus HMRC self-assessment, all fab processes

I've got the stopwatch on my passport renewal to see how long it takes 😊

love the way you can use a bog-standard photo booth for your passport photo, for £6, it checks the photo is compliant, gives you the code so you can then upload the photo to your application and you get 4 paper photos for other forms of ID.

NHS around here is good, and I can get same day appointments easily, and even Urgent Care triaged and saw me within 20 mins a few months ago. I think the NHS problems are very location specific, as 9 years ago in London, I could not get an appt

The countryside is really beautiful, as is much of our older architecture. I like how rural areas are more and more enforcing any building has to fit with the local village (e.g. in the local stone)

The sense of community (everywhere I have lived in the UK; except London)

Next to no crime around the villages here (the most exciting thing I have heard of recently is someone being annoyed that a tractor drove over the edge of their grass and ruined it)

Roasts and Cakes. Teashops and country pubs. Walks, parks, gardens

Accepting of new people around here (in my opinion) - my husband is foreign and we have moved to a rural village in the Midlands, and they have embraced him and helped integrate him into village life

My husband says that he feels safe in the UK, and isn't constantly on edge that someone is going to kick off and pull a gun, as they would easily do where he is from

We make great beer, cider, spirits

The UK has some really cool folk traditions (songs, dances, festivals) and also there is some really interesting local history across the country

Local state schools around here are good

Lots of free or very cheap extra curricular clubs for children around here, and I believe it is similar in nearby areas

A couple of weeks ago, a local town showed that there was no one on the streets due to homelessness, which was pretty cool, so fingers crossed that it will continue - hoping to see this rolled out to other nearby towns too

Adults in the UK can usually learn new skills for free (or very cheap) by doing evening classes at their local college - really easy to upskill

We don't have to pay for 'trade school' if going straight from school (college as we would know it), whereas in many other countries you do

There are so many good things about this country, and many of the challenges we face, are also felt across Europe, Canada, US, Aus etc.

Well, we haven't had phytosanitary checks since Brexit - see the Asian Hornet issues...

Our meat is now labelled not for EU (at massive expense to the sector) but other than that we are relying entirely on EU and other countries to stick to their food standards, because we import so much. People still die every year because of allergens and wasn't Tesco's stuffing full of moths this year?

Beer.

British independents are the undisputed world brewing champions. Nowhere can you drink better or more variety of superb brews. Yet still some people insist on drinking Fosters & Carling…

Yes to passports!!

Access to free libraries

The Arts generally - theatre; lots of free galleries/museums; street art; bookshops; festivals; live bands

Some of the world's best universities and private schools

Scientific research

Access to beautiful countryside - including beaches open to the general public (not true in all countries), huge National Parks, coastal paths etc

Pomp and pageantry - the royal family, armed forces parades, last night of the Proms

Afternoon tea

Folk traditions - Morris dancing, cheese rolling etc

A generally accepting attitude to different cultures and religions

Wide variety of food and cuisines

The BBC with no adverts

Such a wide variety of new books published every year

Fantastic TV documentaries

Pubs

Sunday roast

Pro choice for women wanting a termination

I moved to the UK 20 years ago, from a Southern European country.

I was in awe.

The quality of urban infrastructure, clean and tidy public spaces, the lack of bureaucracy, costumer service, the efficiency in the public sector, etc.

Now I feel like the quality of life in the UK has deteriorated significantly and, in many aspects, is lagging behind certain continental countries.

There's so much to love about this island (the sense of humour, art and culture, the countryside, the most civilised drivers I've met, kindness to animals) the list is endless.

But we're victims of a dreadful political class and (crucially) victims of our own apathy.

Our local recycling centre. It's a well oiled machine

@YourNimblePeachTraybake
Yes, just went to get one done this week. That's what our solicitor said.

@GiveMyHeadPeaceffs 😂 it does feel like a very well kept secret! Especially when the weathers like this but second the slightly mad politics!

The Passport Office and DVLA are very well run compared to a lot of other countries.

No death penalty and, whilst not perfect, a better legal system than some other countries

NHS - again not perfect but have you seen what some other countries have?

I think the public services which people think are still running well eg their child's school, some GPs or libraries etc, only appear to be so because of the very dedicated and selfless staff, going in early, working through breaks, working late, for no extra pay. Just wanting to keep the service at a level they feel the clients deserve. It's not sustainable long term.

Rain, the last 3 or 4 months IK has proved it’s a world leader in rain! ☔️

Food may be getting more expensive but British supermarkets are generally excellent in terms of range and variety and choice of international dishes and flavours. I think we do ready meals really well. M&S food hall is like nothing I have ever seen anywhere else in the world.

Honestly, if you have an off white wall you can just do the photo on a smartphone and upload it to the website. I've recently renewed both my parents' passports this way.

Gov.uk as a central portal is actually very good. You realise this when you try to do any gov admin in any other country.

I lived overseas for several years. It’s amazing how us Brits take things for granted in the UK and it definitely opened my eyes to the positives.

Great idea to celebrate the positives on this thread OP 👍

Free museums (although appreciate this is mainly a London thing).

Agree on government gateway- if you have ever lived anywhere they don't do e-government you will appreciate it.

Online banking (and online purchases in general).

London has brilliant (if pricey compared to other capital cities) public transport.

Going for a walk.

Not much works. It isn't all just about funding either. I have intimate knowledge of the NHS and I can tell you it is a waste of time putting more money into this useless monolith. Needs utter reform but would take 10 years and todays useless politicians are not capable of it, nor are many of the useless General and Servjce Managers who are usually staff who started as clerks and got over promoted.

That is why I'm emigrating again later this year. Regret ever returning to the U.K.

CAMHS which is a paediatric service does not run well. I wouldn’t even say it ran tbh.

Parks
Libraries
Council housing if you can get it
Building standards
Safety
Car driving