Dubai/UAE - where did you think you were?

[WhyamIinahandcartandwherearewegoing]

I’ll preface this by saying I wish the best for anyone out there, working or holidaying. I hope you are and remain safe.

but do people go there with next to no concern for where in the world it’s located? Do they pay no attention to news or the general geopolitical situation, it’s hnot exactly a secret.

are we really that dense that most people don’t look past the bling, the weather, the tax perks, the bloody influencers?

Safer for who? That’s a rather entitled/one sided viewpoint.

There’s a lot of people in glass houses , throwing stones, about this thread.

Yes , Dubai has its issues. It is essentially a different culture. But take a look around the UK. We have indentured slavery, take a look at gang masters, human trafficking, grooming gangs, knife crime. Take a hard look at every high street in the country. In the majority there will be businesses supporting organised crime. I could go on. But you get the picture.

But for the people caught in the cross fire between the US and Iran, this is a terrifying situation, regardless of their reasons for being there.

Have some humanity.

Well, so what if they don't pay tax for a period of time? They are still UK citizens and paid tax before their stint in Dubai, and will afterwards. And I think you have to pay some tax if you bring your money to the UK anyway. And since when did you have to be a taxpayer to get assistance from your country? By that logic, the UK should only assist working parents home from holidays in Dubai, and any stay-at-home parents can just stay put, since they don't pay tax!!

I agree, but people got on planes to fly on holiday to the area where Trump was daily boasting about his big beautiful warships arriving soon in big numbers. I saw a post yesterday by someone who didn't even realise they were flying into that area. It beats me.

I hope everyone is safe and stays safe.

This is a very sobering read and sums up why I’ve always ruled it out as a travel destination or even a transit stop.
I hope everyone gets home safely.
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/united-arab-emirates/safety-and-security

No its not, plenty of people have been on here totally trashing the UK and very happy to be moving to Dubai, boasting about how brilliant it all is, how they wont be paying VAT on school fees, low or no taxes.... quite happy to piss on their own country...

... so why the fuck should my taxes be paid to get these people out or have any sympathy for them?

btw Not including holiday makers.

lol, as if everyone in the UK is a net benefit for our tax system.

This is a good point.

It's up to everyone to decide, the key is that it's informed if you don't want any nasty surprises (such as how close it turns out to be to Iran or inadvertently breaking the law and getting put in prison because you didn't know what the laws were).

It is true that many parts of the UK now feel very unsafe as a woman and I could see how someone would maybe choose a holiday where they felt safe despite laws and culture that they didn't like (choosing a holiday destination isn't the same as living there) - you do need to respect those different laws and culture whilst in the country of course.

The slavery issue would probably be a reason why I'd give it a swerve, personally.

I've lived in 4 other countries, and have travelled extensively, including the Middle East.

Hand on heart I can say that the UK is the least safe place out of all of them.

Most aren't earning a fortune and tax dodging yet expecting UK services.

@Changename12 stay safe, I hope you are home soon x

I’m not sure which residents are being helped out by the tax payer at this point? Any evacuations being talked about are through commercial airlines when they’re up and running, and seem to be for those who are travelling rather than residing there. The bill for extended hotel stays for those people seems to be something their government have offered to pay for although that may not be verified.

I do this too. Plus check FCO guidance, etc. What I find tasteless is crowing on here about how stupid people are who went to X destination when something like this happens. It’s like there’s a smugness at their caution having been proved ‘right’.

What has that got to do with it? There is massive difference between not being a net contributor and choosing to opt out and going to live somewhere with no tax.

These influencers have made their bed.

Of course people on holiday should be repatriated. This should be paid for use the travel agencies.

Missing the point of my original post - and demonstrating my point.

Not what it’s like there but where it is in the world 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

This thread is in really bad taste. Why would you feel the need to gloat at a time like this?

@WhyamIinahandcartandwherearewegoing totally agree and yes I’m afraid most people don’t look past these things- take a visit to my birth town where they think Lee Anderson ( local MP) is a top bloke and Dubai is the ultimate destination when you’ve got a bit of spare cash amongst ‘most’ - I doubt all but about 5% would give a shit about women’s rights and that includes lots of the women , they are more concerned about looking as if they’ve done well to mates -

I would never go there because of their horrendous human and women’s rights record. I don’t understand how people can conveniently ignore it just cos they want a sunny holiday.

On another note, does anyone know what the gold thing on the woman’s face in the picture in the article is? Maybe some kind of jewellery but I’ve never seen anything like it before

🙄 yep, because the UK treat women so well. There’s still inequality in the work place. Grooming gangs are rife, and even when the issue was raised years ago, it was still ignored. We turn a blind eye to how women in certain cultures are treated by their men. Fgs, if we were judging on which countries we should or should not be visiting due to how they treat their people, there’s a very long list. People just focus on Dubai because it’s very opulent, and there’s also a jealousy element, a bit like the pile ons for private education on these boards.

Shame the UK can't apply a surcharge to anybody we pay to fly home, especially if they have been banging on about not supporting the UK and not paying UK tax!

You obviously haven't seen the news?
I wouldn't visit on principle, on how women are viewed alone!

I do think we need to be more nuanced with our opinions. So many in this thread seem to have completely forgotten that outside the glitz of the city centre and the scandal of a few royals are whole communities of loving families, just like here and anywhere, living good lives, who are now scared in their own homes.

I don’t understand why influencers are cited as the people of the Emirates. They’re a tiny, tiny minority! It’s like saying everyone in Manchester is a musician or everyone in London is a banker.

Asking if/why people have so little awareness of where they travel…read the original post and tell me where I’m gloating?

I agree with the sentiment of the OPs thread. I am not sure now is the time though, our concerns should be for those affected and thoughts for those who have died.

It can be confusing when the only emirate that's ever talked about is Dubai, and when Emirates Airlines isn't even the airline of the Emirates. I bet you many people who are perfectly intelligent wouldn't know that Umm Al Quwain is in the same country as Dubai, i.e. both are emirates.