Iceland.Ireland,Austria

[Followtheyellowbrickroad1]

Not an AIBU but here for the traffic ….
Looking for advice…

In the order listed above is the safest countries to live .

Few years back (not sure how many ) I had an inkling iceland was the place to be if the UK got any worse.

I know many people are looking to leave the UK my dilemma is I don’t think I can if I choose too at the moment.

So me …. own business but not something I can transfer and convince Iceland (for example ) to let me in sadly .

Looking to retrain over the next 2/3 years decsisons on what keep changing due to the state of the Uk.

Does anyone have any advice on which route I should be taking with securing my future .

What would you / should I train in and at what level ?
I know what I would be doing if I was choosing to stay in the UK forever but i feel I need to make decisions that open doors to other countries.

Anyone else with this thought process ?

but i feel I need to make decisions that open doors to other countries

Why? No, most people don't have that thought process. Most people have no desire to move away from the UK. Why do you want to? And why those countries? Do you speak those languages? Have a yearning for the culture?

What is it about the UK that makes you want to leave it entirely rather than move?

I think the next few years will be tricky but if the UK navigates this time in a smart strategic way, there may even be positives coming out of the US isolating itself in the way it is now. I'm thinking about the chance to engage much more with Canada and Australia (and rest of the Commonwealth) who are looking for new partners and to also get a better deal with the EU. It could end up being an interesting time to be in the UK. Let's not always be pessimistic...

You can work in Ireland no problem and it’s English speaking so that’s the easiest surely? Weather is a bit crap though!

@titchy I now live in a lovely place that ticks many a box .
We have to be honest though the Uk has went down hill massively .

Id only leave where I am for the sun 😆
or for few other reasons I really don’t want to get too political . (Which is one )

The COL is shocking.

I think we need to really be open to there being better places to live .

To add - I don't really know Ireland or Iceland well enough to comment but for all its quality, Austria can feel pretty insular and the language (and accent) can be a challenge to learn and understand.

The UK is also a really safe country.

Not really sure what you are getting at really.

I agree very much with that thought process .
I'd very much be up for living somewhere warmer though . 😁
Honestly I could be employed by the tourist board for selling the country I live in, but I do feel things are pretty poor here and have steadily been going down hill over the last 20 years especially 10.
Im not trying to be thinking the worst but I really would like the option.
Maybe it would only be for a few years who knows . It may never happen but I’d like to have what I need under my belt .

You're worried about cost of living so you want to move to those famously cheap countries, Ireland and Iceland...?
What are you really on about, OP? Have you been reading the Daily Mail?

I wouldn’t leave where I am now for Ireland . (Although it’s lovely )
If I left where I am it would be for the sunshine ideally ( contradicting my heading I know ) 🙄
Ideally I wouldn’t have went further than France or Italy .
I do love Norwegian countries ( happy to learn the language)

Like I said I want to spend next few years giving myself better options.

The cost of living is high in Ireland and electricity prices here are the 3rd highest in Europe.

Norwegian countries 🤣🤣 hehehe

You've literally listed a bunch of countries with worse or equally crap weather to us!

That’s a pretty shit comment ?
Honestly I watch very little tv (seriously very little)
I do have a mind of my own, I don’t even have a TikTok would you believe (shock horror )
Were you judging ?

Yes other countries are expensive I am looking to train so i have more options, and a better standard of life (if I believe that’s the best choice )

Come on we are living in a pretty crazy world isn’t it nice to have options ?

What have you got to offer those other countries OP? Skills etc

Salaries are high, the teaching profession is highly regarded, education is very good, science, innovation and tech/pharma is booming (yes I know about Trump). Food is of high quality. No council tax, no water rates, taxes are reducing for the average salary every budget so far. Older people well looked after, child allowance is generous. Healthcare is hit and miss, public transport is crap, as is the weather, housing is hard to come by, but that's just a snapshot of the place.

The Daily Mail isn't on the TV.
I'm just a little confused because you want options to live somewhere other than the UK because you don't like the weather or the cost of living. You're listing places with similar weather and a higher cost of living. Either you've done absolutely no research (reference to 'Norwegian countries' might support this) or you're yanking our chains!

Ireland is wonderful, I moved here in 2020 after 35 years in London. I don't really care about weather, and the electricity cost is irrelevant as we have solar, I imagine it would feel different if those factors were different.

What do you like about it vs England?

Haha this is true . I have answered that question.

Ok I love where I live.
I plan to train so I can change my job (if I choose) in the next 2/3 years max depending on the subject .
Ideally id love some sun but if the world gets any crazier or any more of a rat race then I’d love to have the option to move to somewhere with a better standard of living .

I don’t fear going out alone where I live ,but I don’t fancy living anywhere that is a “unsafe “ country .
The cost of everything here is shocking . Why should we accept this . We have choices
a quick google gave the three countries I listed .

The easiest way, at the moment is probably get technological skills, as you could get a digital nomad visa which would give you options on where to live. However with the increase in AI means a lot of these jobs will disappear.

You’re part of a society that has practically crippled itself. What makes you think you’d be welcome in another country?

What do you have to offer? Based on your posts, I’m guessing you’re not very highly educated- do you really think you’ll have the options to achieve a high standard of living elsewhere, especially in a country where you don’t speak the language?

PS- there is no such thing as “Norwegian countries”. Norway is a country. Singular.

I used tv as an example I don’t fill my head with rubbish In any form .
Why was your go to the daily mail ?

You are clearly the argumentative type and I am not explain things properly .

Again I’ve explained this.
I have asked for info / advice simple
not judgement and arguments.

Iceland has absolutely no military, a tiny population and cannot defend itself for five minutes if NATO becomes unreliable. It's also rich in energy resources and a very good strategic position between North America, Europe and the Arctic.

If a certain someone really does decide to make a move on Greenland I'd be extremely concerned, as an Icelandic citizen and resident. Though Iceland has been occupied before and it was very peaceful, it would still be awful.

It is very safe at the moment, yes, and a lovely place to live overall, but the weather's pretty bad a lot of the time and it is expensive.

So that rules out Iceland - have you ever visited as that is not a sunny island

Austria is nice, but quite competitive - a relatively small country which is the primary target of qualified and educated people from it's east and south-east neighbours. People from Slovakia, Slovenia and Balkan who speak fluent German (and English) and many are willing to work in gastairbaiter mode, work, earn money and go home.

If you can learn something in two years, they have already learnt it.