Seriously thinking about leaving the UK - AIBU?

[HonoraBridge]

I love the UK in many ways but it has been going downhill for at least 20 years and it feels as if the speed of the decline is accelerating. I no longer see a happy, or particularly safe, future here. For the first time in my life, I am very seriously thinking about leaving the UK and that feeling gets stronger day by day. When I mention this to friends, many are feeling the same way. YANBU - you are right to think seriously about leaving the UK. YABU - the UK is a still a great country to live in and you are being unreasonable to want to leave.

Go forth and find your nirvana, byeee

This is what I always think when I read these sorts of threads.

I am in NZ, I know that most of the “problems” people mention about the UK are just the same here, and in fact some things can be far worse (for example, we’ve always had very high food prices because of course it costs a lot to import stuff when the country is so far away from everywhere else, plus only two supermarket chains so no competition).

In fact I know two British families, and have heard of many others, who have emigrated here, given it a couple of years and then decided to return to the UK.

It’s just the same problems everywhere.

Haha! Yes exactly. This made me laugh. @ThymeScent - you think there’s too much migration so…you are encouraging your children to become migrants 😂

Oh the irony

Easy to take the UK for granted.

Is it flawed? Yes, but there are so many positives, not least the rule of law.....

All these people saying they'd go but they have to wait for their child to finish in education. So presumably our education system isn't that bad or you'd be off whilst they had time to benefit from the system in one of these fabulous countries.
Another poster said she'd leave but her daughter is disabled. Presumably the health care and support she's getting won't be available in another country.
My DIL is American. She lives in the UK. Will never return to live in America
My SIL is Australian. Her family are all still there. She will never return and has British citizenship. They absolutely love the UK . I have a fabulous life here too. Would never consider living anywhere else

Tbh, I think everywhere is a bit shit unless you're loaded. There are many places even poorer than here.

No of course not.

Many here can’t leave their village or answer their front doors so be prepared to be told you’re U.

Well yes, someone is stopping us. You are. You and all the other Brexiteers who voted to end freedom of movement.

We thought about it when we retired and decided not to for various reasons. We've discussed it recently in hindsight (and having had somebody close to us ill/die overseas) and the one thing we all need to bear in mind ... you MUST be able to speak the language fluently!

There is no reason you can't get your kids in school in your new country.

It won't be the same standard of living for the younger lot though, as housing is now totally unaffordable to the majority. It's the one big issue that's driving down the economy and people's quality of life.

where are you wanting to go and what exactly is stopping you?

But let's be honest, some cultures are much more desirable than others. Would you want your daughters to move to a place where they're legally not allowed to speak in public duento being female? It's no wonder people flock here, but mow the UK is changing forp the worse.

Well wages are shit & stuff is expensive so you aren't wrong to look elsewhere

As other pps have said there are pros and cons. I lived in a southern European country for quite a long time and had a lovely life there. I then had DD who has SEN. On enquiring when registering her for the local school what kind of SEN support they had I was told that if she couldn't cope then she would be kept back a year , not actually given any help.

I still have quite a few friends who live there and they are complaining about the difficulty their kids are having in finding jobs and housing. In the area we lived in you used to be able to buy a small basic house very cheaply. This is no longer the case and it is becoming incredibly difficult to find long term rentals there because of things like AirBnB.

I know things are not great here sometimes and I would say that if someone wants to move abroad then by all means try it. Living in another culture is great and I absolutely loved my time there. I was always a "foreigner" though even though I spoke the language and we lived in a very non-touristy area.

Even though the UK is shit sometimes I do feel I belong here and living in a lovely rural part of the country does help.

There is a sense of entitlement here on this thread, some people in the UK feel it should be better than anywhere else and if it's not they feel they are entitled to a better life elsewhere. UK is going through a bad patch for sure but it's issues are common in most capitalist or Western cultures. Most places go through good and bad patches, that's life and it's tough on the generation caught up in the bad times.

By comparison, my friend is from a place that is booming economically and has become popular with tourists. But she grew up during a horrendous war and the poverty of the aftermath, it leaves her unsympathetic sometimes and drives her mad when people gush about how beautiful her homeland is, she says they deserve it don't they after what they endured. Recently I was saying how hard life is in the UK (neither of us live there) and she made a comment that made me think. She said its a country that built wealth on theft and exploitation for centuries, but now it's a normal place just like anywhere else, going through a normal bad patch, but at least finally it's honest.

Have wondered if elsewhere is better at times. The main problems seem to be worldwide. We all need to get a bit savvy and start sorting out our problems...specifically complacency and fear of the unknown, as well as people just playing games for power.

If you move make sure you speak the language, and have visited the place at least once.(Here's hoping you've got the money!)

Totally agree.

The number of people saying they would if they weren't disabled or had a disabled child.

What they really mean is they don't want to leave a country where they get great heath and social care and benefits for the disabled.

But they aren't grateful nor do they see the hypocrisy of refusing to move abroad cos they will lose their benefits and care.

In some countries they might not even get a visa if they have a disabled child.

I would love to leave but have no transferable skills as my job is UK centric.

A bad choice on my part.

If I could I would consider one of them Scandinavian countries or Australia.

Are Denmark/Sweden/Norway/Finland having economic issues and now also have a dire healthcare service ?

Just the one post from OP?

Yup.

Hit and run.

I understand the mentality of wanting to leave the UK. I’ve lived in Canada for the past 4 years and never looked back. However, unless you have more than one nationality, it’s not a case of just deciding you want to live somewhere else. Most countries have strict immigration requirements (e.g. in Canada we have a points system) so, if you’re serious about moving, look into this further and see if it’s something you are actually able to do. Age, education and transferable skills are all factors. Good luck!

The problem with being an immigrant is that anti-immigrant feelings are growing all around the world.