Talk me down - is this country really so bad?

[BluePassportsAreBollocks]

I’m a long time MN user, NC for this.

Anyway, I’m really down about what our country has become. I’m Scottish but live in England, so much of what I’m saying relates to England but Scotland is just as bad if not worse whenever I go back (before anyone comes along and tells me that it’s all rainbows and unicorns elsewhere!).

The quality of our public services is pitiful. You can’t get a doctors appt, mental health support non existent, hospital backlogs, social care on its knees, schools underperforming, staff in every public sector unhappy and considering going on strike, huge wealth inequalities, huge health inequalities, outrageous profiteering by private companies exploiting the rise in inflation for their own gain (energy, fuel, food, travel), companies cutting their customer service to a shoestring level where it takes 45 mins for someone to pick the phone up only to tell you to use the online contact form, customer service in general appalling and delivered by people who just don’t care, continued and endless political divisions forced upon us and tearing people apart (divide and rule… brexit, boris, scexit, covid), no reply for days and weeks for administrative services like passports, overcrowded public transport, completely unattainable house prices, exorbitant cost of childcare, everything about parenting is a completion, I could go on and on.

I am genuinely thinking of looking for work abroad. But before I do, can someone please tell me…

1. Are things really as bad as they feel here compared to other peer countries (if so which)? Is it that we are living in a bubble and I’m not grateful enough for the things that work? Yes I appreciate the rights and human rights we have, but even they are being trashed as we speak.

2. If I could move anywhere in the world where stuff just worked, where would I’d be and why??

"yet no one has ever envied it enough to copy it."

I think there are other countries with national health systems free at the point of use. I thought Spain was one, but a poster above contradicts that. I did get totally free healthcare when I was taken to hospital in Spain (not even showing an E111/IHIC card), but that might have been because I knew I was a student and an EU citizen at the time.

I currently live in a country with a social insurance system. It's generally much better than the NHS, but there are pros and cons too. You're right that there is a lot in the middle between the UK and US system.

Well, you would need to be earning well in Switzerland, not necessarily before going to Switzerland as long as you can cover the moving costs. You'd need the skills for a work permit as well I suppose now, but you could have moved to Luxembourg without one two years ago.

@Gwenhwyfar I think this has changed post Brexit. If you move there you have to be covered off and show proof of activating healthcare when you apply for residency. I'm not 100% sure if it's free for Spaniards/EU - I was looking at it from the view of being a Brit

Yes there are. I am from one. It's atill nothing like NHS. We get gyno access with regular checks, dentistry to a point, regular checks with gp. My eye prescription was done by a doctor in hospital, opticians just do the glasses. I don't know anyone who would have to wait for specialist anywhere near to what you hear here. Mum went to dermatologist no so long ago without need for gp. Because it was an issue for dermatologist 🤷🏻
And to top it off. The bastarding family (endearing term here😁) had access to dentists for their regular check ups since autumn 2020 like usually.....

Free at point of use doesn't have to mean it sucks. It's really sad that the healthcare system in here is in the state it is.

I did correct my error, it was 400 not 4k. I travelled all over London for my job at the time so needed a six zone pass, I'm sure I wasn't the only one! Good to know its not so stupidly crowded as it used to be, commuting at rush hour used to be absolutely horrific. I bet its still filthy though.