To think that life seems better in rep of ireland?

[PunnyOliveTurtle]

ok...hear me out...My DM is Irish and she has not been home in a good few years, I haven't been over since I was 15, I'm early 40's now. So i decided to bring her over to visit her sisters as they are all getting older...late 60s/early 70's.

I had a wonderful time. I caught up with all of my cousins...and here is where I noticed the divide...they all have gorgeous homes and I mean stunning! Some in the country, some in the town, all fab new builds or gutted and updated old houses. A couple in new housing estates which were FAB!!
One of my cousins has just bought a new home...her DH is driving a 2025 car, they are off on hols next week. I asked her if she won the lotto and she laughed saying she wished, savings are now depleted and she was "broke". I know she has no credit cards because she metioned that she didn't have one when we wer talking about booking dinner somewhere and they wanted to take a deposit.

They all have great jobs...a lot of them are teachers...like i was. But they are no where near as stressed as I was. They are on holidays already and have been with a few weeks.Some are nurses but work part time in private hospitals, others work in big pharma companies, banking etc.Their dh's also have great jobs, engineers, managers in tech/pharma, one owns a construction company, one is a farmer.
All and I mean ALL of their DC who are of uni age are in university...no student loans. They have a grant scheme apparently. None of my cousins themselves have student loans...they are in 30's to mid 50's. (Can you tell we had an in depth discussion on uni and fees etc!)
Their DC aged 15+ all have summer jobs...in a local chippy, local cafe, one on a farm etc. My 18 yr old cant get a job at all!!

Everything just seemed so positive there...and im sure its not but I cant put my finger on it...it really got me.
I'm struggling most months...this trip was part on credit card. DD looking to start uni and i dont know how I'm going to help her... I know they say dont compare and I know there must be those struggling in Ireland too but there seemed to be A LOT more money being thrown around.

Also, if you get a UK state pension, you qualify for a full medical card regardless of income.

Now all the immigrants that cant get into England anymore, are going to Ireland

Yes there will be changes because of this, is child benefit still universal? They also like us have the demographic issue.

Not all policies give money back for day to day. I had health insurance through my employer which gave us money back against day to day medical expenses (50% usually, but obviously capped). When I left we weighed up the options of paying for it ourselves (4k & counting) or switching to the health insurance offered by his employer. His is a very private hospital heavy policy, but not a single penny back for out patient expenses. Unfortunately his employer doesn't allow you to choose. But we figured it would have to be a seriously bad year for it to cost us more in our day to day medical expenses than the cost of the private health insurance.

I think there's a lot of tension and division with regards to immigrants/migrants at the moment.

My family are from Dublin and frankly I've found it a pretty miserable place. I've been all over, probably visited about 50 times.

It always rains, everything is really really expensive, they don't have as good shops as they do in the UK. The locals aren't really friendly (to me anyway), the city is a massive tourist trap.

There's quite a bit of racism and most of it is just suburbs or grey estates with hardly any distinguishing features. The public transport absolutely sucks.

Obviously people who are successful can have decent lives. But I don't think they have a proper NHS and poverty/ joblessness is pretty bad.

So I honestly don't think I'd ever wish to live there. Even though it's my cultural home.

Private school there is so much cheaper, so it’s more of a realistic option for those who want it.

I live in Dublin and have a lovely life, it is not a shithole, crime has not gone up. We have the sea and the mountains. It's vibrant and buzzy. I love it. My namee is not an accident! There is a housing crisis though, unfortunately.

I needed a hernia OP when I was living in the UK but the NHS consultant I saw said I wouldn’t be considered for surgery until it became serious (!!)
I mentioned it to the new GP when I moved here and had my OP about 3months later. This was about 10 years ago now.
You can still book a same day GP appointment if you need it although it’s about 2 weeks to book a non urgent appointment.

I can see why they aren't particularly friendly to you with an attitude like that towards them.

Ireland has an unemployment rate of 4% which is pretty much considered full employment.

@TheKeatingFive how is that different to London when you factor in the wage differences?

Yes, but its easy to make an appoinment. Call up, they give you next available appointment.

You can also get GP cards if you are under a certain income.

It is not a no go at night, I go there all the time very happily.

Most people are able to afford private health care. GP appointments are paid for but can be claimed (not 100%) back on health insurance which many people are able to afford monthly. Definitely better than waiting for 3 weeks and having to get through to a GPs reception at 8 am, nigh on impossible!

But another point to consider is that public transport and particularly rail is terrible in Ireland.

i would agree with that

Yes. We moved back to the UK. Ireland was just getting too expensive.

Why the rest of the EU has allowed this is an interesting question, but it has made it a rich country.

I do wonder why

It used to be a joke here in NI that you knew you'd crossed the border when you went from asphalt to dual cabbage way. Now the opposite is true.

Ireland isnt suffering 14 years of Tory incompetence, the division they caused or the expense of Brexit.

I’m a teacher here and our job seems a lot easier than teaching in the UK . I leave school most days at 2:30 . Very little after school paperwork other than September .
Ireland is the most amazing place to live . We love it !
Lucky though as we live near the big universities so no paying for kids to live away !
However, no idea how my kids will buy in this housing market …….insane !

God my long term illness is turning me into a dope!! One of many symptoms is brain fog which makes reading and retaining information very hard. I apologise for that wrong information. And I’m thinking I should try to apply again for a GP card. Thank you.

No harm in trying! 🙌

I'd be ecstatic if I could see a GP, for any price!

Yes of course i have seen all of those places on the list.

Then schooling is far from free. Every school we've been involved in (2 primary and 2 secondary to date) have requested not-so "voluntary contributions" of €250.

I pay £30 a month for dds secondary

Obviously people who are successful can have decent lives. But I don't think they have a proper NHS and poverty/ joblessness is pretty.

Not sure what you mean by a proper NHS ? Ireland has its own public health provider called the HSE.

Unemployment rate in Ireland is similar to UK, both in and around 4%

Sorry i also think that a lot of dublin is an absolute shithole.

I lived and worked there for a year and i was miserable.

There are much nicer places in ireland to live.

I have lived in Ireland, England and Scotland. My standard of living is definitely better in Ireland - way more disposable income and it's easier to make friends. I miss some things about the UK such as the choice of shops and Waitrose. Plus I think villages are much prettier in the UK. But overall Ireland wins out for the standard of living and raising kids