to think the UK has become awful?

[ma1formed]

I can't pinpoint when, but it feels like everything that was once pretty good is now quite awful

So expensive
No doctors
Uni costs for kids insane
Terrible rent / can't buy a house
Everyone seems quite unpleasant or racist

Is it just me?

All the tax is coming from those on PAYE and it isn’t sustainable any more.

another big issue. Tax is far to weighted on
income.

Try living in Libya, Somalia, Haiti, Afghanistan. You don't know you're born!

🙄

Less tax? How will everything be paid for?

god what a depressing thread. We live in one of the safest countries in the world. Maybe look out to the world to realise how lucky we are

Just look at the news. The UK is one of the safest places to live in the world in terms of climate, democracy and opportunity.
I've lived in Spain, Germany France Italy and the Far East and I know which place I'd rather bring my children up in.

Complaining about pot holes! For god's sake get a life - you have no idea!

I firmly disagree with people being rude and racist. I work in the nhs and most people are absolutely lovely in my experience.
The rest… yeah things aren’t great. But I’ve lived abroad and work with lots of immigrants from all over and they all complain about ‘home’ and how their family say things are terrible there (all over the world) so I take it all with a pinch of salt!

I'm familiar with how PAYE affects high earners.

It personally affects me too. I have not even suggested the PAYE system is effective. It is well known 50% of the population or less are net contributors.

I was highlighting the fact that decreased tax does equal decreased service. In a simplistic view.

You can say decrease taxation but do more for less in the same sentence. But it's not economically sound.

Totally agree about not recovering from 2008.

Which actually results in less tax all round. People who are too heavily penalised by tax reduce hours/put into a pension. This country can’t afford for higher rate tax payers to be doing that right now.

My sister visited from Australia last month. First time she’s been back in the UK in 6 years. She was shocked at how things have deteriorated. Cost of living in Aus has always been higher but wages are much higher to match. Now she says cost of living here is similar to Aus but salaries still proportionately low. She also said public services seem so much worse.
Aus is a much more racist country though.

What a strange argument. OP has no right to complain about the obvious decline in public services etc because it could always be worse?!

@TheThinkingGoblin

The UK (England is driving it) has massively deteriorated, which is seen now by the noticeable reduction in the standard of living of the average person in the UK

Exactly. We are no longer peers with rich countries Canada, Australia, France, Netherlands, Germany, Norway etc. The average person in the UK is substantially worse off than citizens of the above countries. Remove the top 10% of hoiseholds and the rest are nearer to Eastern Europe in terms of living standards.

This was a reply to PinkRoses1245

Agree 100%

It’s not economically sound to keep penalising the highest contributors with some on marginal rates of over 100% the government have found this out the hard way. We are now at the tipping point that people change their behaviour. Need a consultant anyone?

The problem is - the lowest earners aren’t paying enough tax. Stopping the most productive members paying in is just, frankly, tin pot politics. European models tax lower earners more and wealth more. They don’t solely rely on their 5% of highest earners on PAYE.

I agree.
Tell me the other countries where you can be put in prison for saying racist things to someone. Where you can build a place of worship for whatever faith you have. Where schools are expected to have a proportion of children of ethnic minorities. Where other cultures are studied at school. Where mixed race marriages are accepted by the vast majority of people?
I wonder if people on MN realise that in some European countries it is standard form to make monkey noises when watching black sports competitors.

I think the UK is the least racist country in the world.

Sorry but I wouldn't choose to be born in the 50's at all.

Horses for courses but...

• Racism and homophobia

• Sexism and misogyny

• Rampant ableism, massive stigma attached to anyone considered outside the 'norm'

• Being considered a second class citizen as a woman. Needing your Dad or Husband to do anything of note like take out a mortgage

• Husbands could legally rape their wives for another 46 years(!) because we were still effectively seen as 'belonging' to a husband after marriage

• Rampant child abuse where children were never believed and some was even tolerated / encouraged by society at large.

• Decades of being expected as women to put up with all sorts of shitty male behaviour including domestic abuse because of the stigma of divorce

• Extremely limited options for the majority of women in terms of what you did with your life

• Decades of being extremely limited and insular in worldview due to lower levels of travel and engagement outside of own circles

• Decades of limited understanding of self and others due to less knowledge

• Greater impact of generational trauma and all the crap that follows trauma because of lack of access to anything that would help to understand and break the cycle

I agree
No Dr's had 3 appointments cancelled this year all last minute where only telephone appointments too.
Roads in a state having to spend more on car maintenance.
Schools and hospitals in terrible state
People struggling to get a dentist
Struggle to buy a house that you could loose if having to pay for care in your old age
Councils going bankrupt!

You know, the mad thing is, I read that in total over a TRILLION pounds was cur during austerity and the national debt went UP (I think by like something mad like 100% but can't recall).

Insane.

@algasport

The UK is one of the safest places to live in the world in terms of climate, democracy and opportunity

All fine things. But living standards in terms of housing/fuel/disposable income have taken a massive nosedive. Take away the top 10% of households and the rest live like citizens of a middle income country in terms of purchasing power/disposable income.

I complain a lot but-

So expensive- Food is quite cheap relative to other countries and its easy to get good quality second hand clothes. Childcare is very expensive, but it is also expensive in countries like the USA, its a political decision
No doctors- this is bad but at least if you do get one, its free at the point of access.
Uni costs for kids insane - true but its not as bad at the USA.
Terrible rent / can't buy a house- I live in London (most expensive region in the UK) and am 31 and bought in 2019. It is expensive but not more so than the likes of Paris, Munich, New York, Hong Kong. The only capital city which is cheaper for citizens is singapore with a government housing system (and it isn't even significantly cheaper these days). The average home in Israel is 27 times average income!
Everyone seems quite unpleasant or racist - people are generally polite and as for racism, the UK is generally much more inclusive towards BAME people compared to other European countries and far better for black people compared to the USA.

What is appalling is the low wages in many jobs and also the level of wealth inequality. Whether you buy a house or get a good job is dependent on who your parents are i.e. you would find it easier to hold down and progress in a graduate role is if you have parents who live in a place with jobs and allow you to live rent free starting out. This will also put you in good stead to buy your own home if you wish.

I wasn't born in the Uk but have lived in two other countries so have a point of comparison. have close family in 4 other countries-Israel, USA, Germany and Singapore so I can also compare.

I just realised you said in your 50's, not born in the 50's!

Still, the list is still a good list of reasons to be glad to be alive today!

If you hate it leave - life is too short.
There are plenty who would happily take your place.

Agreed