Why don't a lot of English people live abroad?

[Booneymil]

Hi! I was just thinking about something. I am Irish originally. I have lived and worked in around seven different countries at my age. I am 40. I love moving around and living in different places. I have been working in england now for two years.

At my large workplace, there are a lot of English people and a lot foreign people working there. So we have people from Spain, Poland, Italy, Australia, and Lithuania working there. Every one of the foreign people there have lived all over the world. I was chatting to the lithuanian woman, she has lived in Indonesia, in Sweden, Switzerland and in Italy.

I was chatting to the Spanish woman - she has lived in Italy, Spain, Germany and Norway. She told me she was from a wealthy family in spain so she had no need to move, she just had a desire to see the rest of the world. I was the same, I always wanted to see more of the world.

The English people in my workplace, there are about thirty of them.

Not one of them has ever lived abroad. A lot of them are old enough that they could have moved around the EU before Brexit happened. But they didnt.

I was thinking about it. Why? Why is it so different in England.

Surely you know that living in 7 countries by 40 isn’t typical. Most people haven’t lived in more than one. Maybe 2. If you were to go to the countries that all the people you work with came from you would find the vast majority have never lived elsewhere.

I’m English and have never lived abroad though I have English friends that have lived in UAE and Qatar. I’ve also got UK family members settled for 20 years + in Thailand and Canada. My son had lived in Italy and would be keen to live in other countries too.

For me, I like where I live. I like visiting other countries and learning about their culture but am always happy to come back to the UK. Other than the weather which admittedly can be miserable a lot of the year, I’ve got friends and family here, there’s lots to see and do culturally and also good food. I live in London which is very multi-cultural so I see people from all over the world on a daily basis, I’m friends with some of them and learn from them. Moving abroad seems a huge hassle, countries which I might of considered 20 years ago now are less attractive with similar high cost of living relative to the UK and high housing costs. Added to that I don’t speak any other languages to a high level and have no talent for it, I’d worry about being socially isolated when in the UK I have a wide circle of friends.

This feels like another thinly veiled criticism of the UK. I haven’t lived abroad as I love my job here, I love being surrounded by family and our friends and I feel comfortable here. If I was born in another country I’m sure I’d feel there same!
I have lots of colleagues from all around the world and overwhelmingly they move to the UK for work as they have so many more job opportunities here. I’ve always got great jobs and progressed quickly in my career so never needed to move abroad for this

I suspect if you went into any firm in many countries you would probably find that most of the native people working there had never lived and worked abroad either.

Some people like travelling around, some prefer to stay on home territory.

It’s not unique to England, when I was living in France we were talking about it and someone said “We’re not a country that migrates” and… it’s true.

You’re from Ireland, a country with a long history of migration (like mine) so for us it’s normal. My family has always migrated. I grew up knowing I wanted to live somewhere else at least once, I couldn’t wait to do it. My mind cannot comprehend wanting to live and die in the same country, let alone the same town.

It’s definitely cultural.

When I lived abroad, in several countries, my friends were a mix of locals and other expats but I didn’t think I was better than the locals just because I’d made the choice to live in another country.

It sounds like it may be a you problem, rather than a them problem. If you’re coming across as snooty and bigoted as you are on here, maybe the local English just keep you at a distance?

Oh, and don’t forget, 5.5 million Brits live abroad. You seem to be ignoring this fact because it doesn’t suit your uninformed argument.

I really can't understand how you met so many people in the UK who have never been abroad. I can't think of 1 single acquaintance or friend or British family members who hasn't travelled. Of all ages.
It may be a geographical situation where you are mixing with a small number of British people OP? The most mundane example for travel (not living abroad), my nearest neighbour in her 70s has travelled to 4 countries this year alone. Not unusual.

I think we all get a narrow view depending on where we live and our industry. Where i work I meet very many Spanish people so could easily believe that French or Dutch or whatever do not travel so much, but it's more because the qualifications in Spain for my industry align with ours.

I don't think its an English issue per se but i do think countries that have a strong history of emigration are more likely to show a very positive attitude towards working abroad. They also are more likely to have family abroad that they visit and it opens their mind more to travel or work overseas. Irish people (like OP and me) were brought up with multiple cousins uncles and aunts who had emigrated, emigration was deeply rooted into our culture. On the other hand I have an Italian friend who moved to Ireland with her Irish DS. She tells me that everyone in her home town thinks it's really remarkable that she left the country. She is from a wealthy MC city, there was plenty work and excellent health systems. Most of them had nice foreign holidays when they wanted them, or could take gap years to go travelling. She says it just wouldn't occur to someone to go work abroad for the sake of it.

Traveling abroad is not the same as living abroad otherwise I could say that I've lived all over the world. :)

I don't get the English people are like this, most English people, ie those that live in England, have roots in other parts of the UK, I was born in England but would always call myself British, my parents, and grandparents come from various parts of the UK, England, Scotland, Northern and Southern Ireland, and in the previous generation a bit of Welsh too. If you don't like the British that's fine, just hang out with the globe trotters. You do seem a bit narrow minded though.

Agree, I’ve travelled a bit, particularly as a student but never had a burning desire to live in another country. It’s quite fashionable to moan about the UK at the moment but I really love where I live and feel lucky to have been born in this country where we have everything we need and where everything runs efficiently (ish!)

I would have loved to have lived and worked overseas. Indeed I had the opportunity to do so when I graduated, but turned it down due to not wanting to leave my childhood sweetheart (we broke up a year later, but that's another story and a very hard lesson learned). It's my only true regret in life, that I didn't grab the opportunity to experience life in a different country with both hands.

Life choices and circumstances subsequently dictated that a life abroad wasn't possible, and I'm no longer sure that I would want to live and work overseas (family, friends, hobbies, decent disposable income, no mortgage, future pension, NHS provision etc). We do however, spend all of our annual leave in different countries and hope to spend more prolonged periods of time overseas when we retire (hopefully before state pension age - if we make it).

I can't think of anywhere I'd want to move to apart from the Nordic countries. And I went to Denmark a few years ago and they didn't have a toaster where I was staying. Fuck that.

I think being an island doesn’t help somehow!
the idea of moving between countries where you just keep driving seems easier 🤷🏻‍♀️ 😂

I think this is the problem with using your very small sample size and trying to extrapolate it at a population level. You’re seeing a very biased sample.

I have lived half my life in France and there were so many people from the UK living and working there. The company I work for covers a few countries in Europe and the majority of the workers in our European offices are British (despite not being a British company).

I don’t think your statement holds true that British people don’t travel abroad, 85% of people have a passport.

You realise that the U.K. has a strong history of emigration? And the U.K. includes the English.

Not English here, but Scottish. I was born and grew up in a small rural Scottish village of about 250 people. Off the top of my head I can think of at least 12 people I grew up with from this tiny village who have been living and working abroad - in Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Sicily, USA, Switzerland, Norway, Italy. I also have cousins who live/work in Australia, New Zealand and Menorca, and I live in the Canary Islands - retired now but did have a business here. I guess it depends who you know!

Exchange rate and opportunity. In many industries the uk is still thought of as being one of the strongest markets in terms of innovation and opportunity.
Languages, most other cultures are taught english from a young age and often want experience in the british market to hone their british language skills futher as it is the international language of business. Us natives are not really taught other languages to the degree that we can get a high paying job in say spain. I am one of these people. Despite my gcse spanish, I can just about order a beer. There is no way I could get a job at the same level with my current spanish ability. I work with a large multi national global team where I am the only british person based in the UK, and we converse in english. However I wouldnt be able to transfer to say, spain with my current spanish ability.

Yep, the OP is ignoring, the stats, facts and history and spewing bigoted and uninformed opinions about the English.

Having travelled extensively, in my opinion the answer is because England is really nice place to live and I haven’t visited anywhere else that is quite as civilised.

Lol.

"I'm not judging English people. I'm just saying, you must be very small-minded and boring if you've never left your entire family and friendship group to go and live somewhere else, I can't bear to spend time with people like that. Not saying I look down on them, but there must be something wrong with them. All Scottish, Welsh and Irish people do it, so why can't the English?"

Living abroad is not the norm for anyone! I have lived abroad, it's really bloody difficult being so far away from family. My brother was living abroad during Covid, and when our mum died - that was really, really a lot more difficult again. Some of us are carers. Some of us are on minimum wage, or rely on tax credits. Some of us are disabled. Some of us want our parents to see their grandkids. Please feel free not to engage with us at work if your attitude is that we are lesser.

I agree with the people who noted language as a main reason. Also compounded by Brexit. I would be retiring abroad but for the great mistake of 2016.

Hence why so many other nationalities want to come and work/live here. Particularly in the medical profession, the UK is very attractive.

Scared? How have you arrived at that odd conclusion?

I've never had any inclination to live & work in another country. I quite like it here, as it happens.

I love where I live - rural England - green, quiet, peaceful, beautiful, temperate.

I love to travel but in short bursts, two weeks at a time. I'm always glad to get home. I've travelled to 36 countries so far, had an international job for more than 10 years, but I like being at home - obviously - or I'd move somewhere else.