The death of the British countryside

[Dappy777]

I have lived in north Essex since 1998. When we moved here, this was a small village on the outskirts of a quiet market town. In the last ten years, it has been ruined. My local woods have been hacked down to make way for two huge new estates, and at the other end of the village a second giant housing estate has been built. Now we've been told the fields in the centre of the village are going to be built on as well. The traffic is so bad that the country lanes, which were meant to take the odd tractor and a few cars, now have the sort of congestion you'd expect on the M25. The main road into town is also having 500 new houses built along it. That road is choked with traffic now, so what the hell is it going to be like when 500 extra cars are added?

This beautiful weather has really brought it home to me. My sister lives in a village 30 miles from here, and it's exactly the same where she is. In fact, it's worse. Everywhere I go they are jamming more and more disgusting rabbit hutch 'houses' on top of one another. Instead of bird song, all you hear is the drone of cars and the screeching and backfiring of idiot boy racers. I think we really are living through the death of the British countryside. There will still be fields and trees, of course, but the countryside as I knew it will soon be gone forever.

What sickens me is that I know the left get a kick out of all this. They seem to think that everyone in the countryside is a rich, fox-hunting 'Tory' in a big mansion. In reality, the vast majority of so-called 'nimbys' are just ordinary people who've worked hard and desperately want a bit of peace and quiet. My sister has devoted 30 years to the NHS, as has her husband. They've slogged their guts out to buy a little semi-detached house in a village. Now that village is being destroyed around them.

Is it just here in the south east? Or is this happening in other parts of these islands?

I’d say that Britain is not the same country in fact. Geographical continuity alone is not enough. Demographics have changed, the languages have changed - always a firm marker - the material culture is very different. Forced introductions to work that helped in the past will not help now after a new and particularly vicious enclosure period that offers no trade offs. All it offers is forced slavery. Rule by force rarely lasts long - and especially not if threatened war involves arming the young men too. Women will all be treated like dirt.

Disagree, human nature hasn't changed.

Life for a single person on benefits is around 400 per month, nmw is 400 per week.... thats motivation.

Bottom line is, if you re unemployed, not sick, not worked for months/years and you refuse a work scheme, you'd lose your benefits, that was the "social contract" under Thatcher.

I personally do not see whats wrong with that... will it lead to everyone getting a job at the end of it? no of course not but allowing 1m young people to waste away for the next 60 years on benefits is cruel.

I saw the change in my bother and also recently in a young man who is taking part in a work experience scheme run by a charity, he hadn't worked for 3 years.

Yes, either you didn’t work and got nothing (sorry, initial typo) or you worked and got everything. Are you denying either the importance of housing or that access to it has changed? Or the shift in emphasis back to inheritance. Cos all of those are facts.

I don't see that high housing costs and lack of access to it is a reason not to work...

Stuck in bedroom in the family home or shared house, with SFA or be in the same living space but with an extra 1200 per month....

Inheritance? most people don't get that until middle age or beyond.

As i said to another poster, the alternative is 1m young people and increasing, stay on benefits for the rest of their lives...

@WaryCrow I think many young people do see a route to a decent wage and take it. We have too many who use every excuse in the book not to bother. Life has changed but if they have a roof over their heads, they can work and train. We know we have lots of vacancies and we need to stop making excuses about costs. On another thread a couple are buying a house for £125,000. Two salaries of £25,000 make this possible. Young people could earn this on a building site if they got their backsides into gear. Or in a care home. I’ve seen young people doing both. It’s not impossible and we need to get tougher.

Really. You honestly think that people today have exactly the same extent of motivations that existed in the 80s? I’m sorry, but that’s a total joke and shows me you are not serious.

What you are suggesting is that people should be smiley and happy and forever positive about working for nowt. Nothing of their own. Just pull forelocks forever to those inheriting everything for no work.

The only way that works is in a culture of force - either force by violence or the force of controlled narratives, which used to be called totalitarianism and generally frowned upon by those civilisations that still have the audacity to call themselves democratic and free (although there has been some concern in the past expressed by its reduction and a pathetic inability to look at facts and join the dots).

The endless gaslighting and shit around the culture of enforced positivity was entirely and exactly driven by the shift, and we’ve seen that the country is also willing to use force of law against people.

It won’t last forever: the culture is changing in front of us. I assume you’re happy then to be the elite in an inverse totalitarian state. But you’re not invulnerable, and as we see from both Russia and the USA the paths available from there do not lead anywhere good.

Yes hunting! There is a huge private estate near me and they hunt often!

The population has been increased artificially by Labour and LEFT leaning Tories. They have all misunderstood the ageing of our population. They thought we would be like Japan with too many retirees and fewer tax paying workers. The thought it was going to happen in a few years. It wasn't we had much longer.
This mass immigration was not needed it could have been manged better by being much more selective and restricting it to Skilled Workers we specifically need and better training of our own people to earn more in more skilled jobs. Not delivery riders on scooters.
Plundering Asia or Africa for doctors and nurses for instance was disgraceful.
The growth of our own population would not have required so many houses, perhaps 50% less and we would have a nicer countryside.

@BurntBroccoli It’s banned. They follow scent laid earlier. You seem to think we should all be given land. What on earth does first registration mean? The Inclosure Awards?

@BurntBroccoli What are they hunting?
Sounds like a photo op or a journalistic coup on your doorstep.

If they believe their task is to breed and the state funds them they will be the exception.

Trail hunting has been proven that it’s a scam - they absolutely do still hunt foxes and any other wildlife that gets in their way. Badgers, brown hare, deer... They even capture foxes to release later to ensure a kill for those attending. Cubs are often thrown to hounds to train them. It’s horrendous and you are very naive to believe that hunting does not go on any more.

First registration means land not previously add to HM Land Registry’s register. Compulsory registration was only brought in for the whole of England and Wales in 1990 though some areas had a legal requirement before this date. Land registry estimates that 14% of land is not registered and the government are looking into rectifying this.

Exactly that

@BurntBroccoli You are 100% wrong. There are no hunts hunting live animals. I’d get a life if I was you. And yes, I do know!

Just off the top of the list - March 2025
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clynjmxvwzno

And a few more hunt convictions from 2021-2022.

Not really on topic, but apart from the building of far too many new estates (without the accompanying infrastructure to support them), we also have the abominable HS2! It has completely decimated the countryside in all areas around us!

@Anonymousemouses Yes. Near me too. I also believe where I live we have enough school places. Building GP practices is not the same as staffing them. Go and have a look at the Chess Medical Centre. Thats not even serving a new estate. The top floor is the Marie Celeste!