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?

Mountain rescue works well. Which is often what happens when organisations who know what they’re doing are left to sort themselves out without interference.

I agree, the Tell Us Once bereavement service is amazing

And I love, love, love Paddington 1 and 2, so fabulous.

On that note, I'm going to add Shaun the sheep / Aardman Animation too

I think the RNLI might be pretty good too?

Another one - until very recently, palliative care. I think it is struggling in very recent years - not surprising post Covid and wuth an ageing population- but there are still areas where it works very well.

Hedge funds and shares in things that the Tory Govt has privatised. (See Mrs Sunak and childcare, Hester and NHS , Palantir and NHS data)

I know the NHS is seen as broken, but in many ways it’s still a good institution. We can all go to the doctor, hospital etc without having to worry whether we can afford it .

I’m not naive, certain areas such as mental health do need improving. However, other areas are superb, such as breast cancer care.

Blood donation service. It's an essential service and people give their blood free of charge!

I'm in London which probably helps as I know some people elsewhere struggle to get appointments. You can book online and the process of donation is very straightforward. I love the fact that you get a text a few weeks later to tell you which hospital got the donation. Gives me a warm glow.

All our local GPs seem to be very good and both I and my DD have received excellent hospital outpatient treatment for different health issues in the last 18 months.
The train service from where I live to London is almost spookily reliable, compared to previous years (FGW).

I know neither of these things are anything like as good in many other areas.

I’d agree. After 24 years, the state of the UK is the worst I’ve seen it. Working behind the scenes, I’ve never seen schools and the NHS so bad. About 10 friends left working for the NHS because it’s so bad. Crime? I see about four crimes a week now and the police are indifferent/do nothing. Schools: they completely cut SEN programmes and now around 32-35 kids per class in state schools. I work in business intelligence and about 1-2 British companies have gone under ever two weeks over the last year. So is it terrible? Yes. Will it get worse? Probably. And don’t even get me started on this scum government and the amount of bribes and corruption. I would say we are worse off. Our economy is actually worse than Russia.

Loving our gardens, from dinky little courtyards with pots and tubs busting with bulbs this time of year, to larger plots with a border, a greenhouse and a pond.

Whatever the space we find a way of overcoming the elements and making it a haven for diversity.

and we know our plant name and what to plant in different soil types.

Same as Scotland. England especially Southern England is massively over populated.

Rape is not a non crime. Many people are rightly arrested for it each year. They spend sooo much enforcing the rape/sexual harassment laws.

This 💐

The position with the NHS is very, very patchy. Within the last twelve months our family's experience has largely been great, but I acknowledge that's had a large element of luck in it.

I fell over last year and broke my finger. It was a bad break. I got treatment at A&E (Minor Injuries) at my local hospital within about three hours and a referral for later the same week to a specialist Hand Clinic at a major teaching hospital. They operated on it a few days later to put in a pin, and I had months of specialist hand physio at the same hospital. Without all of that I'm not sure that hand (my dominant one) would be fully functional.

My Dad had a year of declining health before he died. This is in rural Scotland. The local GPs and practice/district nurses were absolutely wonderful. Now they are doing a good job of looking after my Mum.

We have an NHS dentist. This feels like winning the lottery! I flinch when I hear what people pay to see a dentist privately.

All the over 60s in the family have been able to get free Covid and flu vaccines. (I am too young for the main rollout of the flu vaccine but got one on grounds of spending a lot of time with my Mum, who's 91 and has a lung condition.)

Another family member has had significant physical and mental health issues and her GP has been excellent.

Hmm, yes, possibly true but only if the patient gets a bed on the ward. My relative didn't get transferred into the stroke unit for many days. Even the doctors told her she'd have had a better outcome if she'd been admitted more quickly.

I'm sorry to hear that. This is what I mean about luck. My Dad had what looked like a stroke (turned out to be TIA) and was in the stroke unit in the nearest teaching hospital within a couple of hours.

Allotments. What a wonderful idea they are.

Telly. Think of the shite you’ve seen when in foreign hotels.

The Tube. It’s ancient and can be slow but it’s a thing of beauty. All those lines connecting our vast capital. Even out to the ‘burbs!

Humour. We’re fucking excellent at laughing at others (kindly) and ourselves (wildly).

Fashion. World class creatives who get employed in the best fashion houses.

Putting on a proper show when the rest of the world is watching (Olympics, Royal pomp etc).

We’ll be right again when we get this shower of shite out of government and start investing in the collective as opposed to the individual once again.

Queuing! The UK has mastered how to queue!

Every branch of the arts (and comedy) - we have punched above our weight for decades - we are creative, free and independent minded thinkers - IMHO Americans always want to neck or be on the winning team and to jump on the band wagon - the first sign of a band wagon here and we're all rubbing in the opposite direction! Our acting schools produce so many great actors for TV and film, our entire TV and film industry is world class. We are innovators in the arts - everything from fashion to every genre of music through every branch of literature. It's only when you go to America and encounter their TV and radio that you realise we are streets ahead in terms of quality and impartiality. I think it's the TV and films we watch, the music, news and podcasts we listen to and there love comedy, theatre and music scene today really add to our quality of life.

Our volunteers, especially in Search and Rescue. Get lost or injured up a mountain? Mountain Rescue will get you home. Getting into difficulties on the coast or at sea? RNLI. Get lost and need help anywhere "From Hill to High Water"? Lowland Rescue 😎

Agree - the majority of bureaucracy, both public and private, is remarkably straightforward. Everything from switching bank accounts, renewing mortgage, etc. to paying off student loan, passport, driving license renewal, swapping energy suppliers has all been fine. There are so many guides to things like applying for POA that they make it as easy as possible to do yourself.

Free advice via gov.uk, various legal lines, citizen's advice etc (albeit I'm aware are getting cut drastically).

The variety of competition in most of the above means that while things are expensive there are ways to save money too. Lots of people earn £1000s by switching bank accounts. I currently pay about £20 p/m for superfast broadband which consider I WFH is probably in use for up to 18hours a day, every day. So many places have free wifi now I haven't bothered renewing a phone contract and just stick a tenner on gifgaff once every few months. There is so much programming available for free (CH4, ITV, CH5 catch up) or for, what, £12 a month if you have a tv license. Or can alternate between prime/netflix/now tv etc. I currently pay £1 a month for sky cinema.

The introduction of alternatives to the post office - I know evri, DPD etc get (sometimes deservedly) a bad rap but when they work they are amazing - I delivered a pair of rollerskates (HEAVY!) across the country for £3 via inpost the other day, no need for a label or to go into a shop, just 2 secs at a locker I've also used the post office's pick up service where you don't need a printer and they pick it up from your house.

Some things that seem extortionate here are downright cheap compared to other countries (see the price of basics here https://www.globalproductprices.com/Australia/banana_prices/compared to US, Australia, new zealand etc. I notice Iceland isn't even on the list)

When the weather is nice there are so many good days out for completely free depending on where you live. The costs people say are essentials are actually often completely negotiable - you don't HAVE to eat out, by loads of snacks, or go via the gift shop if you go to the beach/museum/wander round the shops. Parking in some places is extortionate but if you're prepared to walk there's often a side street ten minutes away or 3hours free in a supermarket car park.

Freedom of speech - yes we have a lot to moan about here with our politicians but at least we're allowed to!

Yes!

The air ambulance was on the scene at a rta near here with two doctors and a paramedic within 5 minutes of the crash last week- I can barely get my shoes on in that time.

Our local rubbish dump.

Seriously, its amazing. Clean, streamlined, helpful staff, organised into different types of rubbish.

Whenever i go (very rarely, about twice a year) Im always amazed at how well run it is. Its just so efficient. In my head i view clearing out the garage as a chore, but then i get to the dump and i don't know what exactly it is about it, but something about how surprisingly clean and friendly it is just makes me swoon with appreciation.

There’s not really much I could do with Barclays app and online I can’t do with my Chase app or online in the US.

I think Barclays still uses a pin entry reader that you had to put your card into to get a code before you can login online, sorry but that’s archaic.

One thing that pissed me off during my last trip to the UK, my Halifax debit card was expired and I was waiting for a new one and they would only let me withdraw £100 or so a day till I got my card. That policy is so stupid. I have my passport and other ways to identify myself but NO I can only withdraw more than £100 with a debit card. I was so pissed off. That’s a ridiculously stupid policy.

i don’t know if UK banks do this now but heir didn’t when I moved and already banks in the Us issues cards with all details including number on the back so it was to use the apps photo feature to capture all serial without having to type them online for transactions.

One are the Uk was definitely better was quick transfer to other bank accounts but with Zelle investment in faster payments that’s not really that much of an advantage anymore.