dugongs

think your living in cloud cookoo land if you think what you have described sounds safer than anywhere in uk.

It may be better than the rougher parts of London and Birmingham but quite frankly 90% of England would not suffer from these issues you describe on a wide scale. The difference with Oz is that the suburbs are the city and therefore the crime happens on average peoples door steps which is truly frightening.

I am happy to walk my dog at night in surrey and have no fear of crime day to day. Its rather niaive of you to make such sweeping generalisations about the UK.

wizzywozza

All I can say is that when I visited the UK 4 years ago and went back to my home town - a 'quiet' Sussex town, and the estate where I quite happily lived in safety for 8 years, I was astounded at the grafitti there, the fact that no-one was about during daylight hours - let alone at night - and the number of intimidating teenage gangs roaming the streets during the day.

The CCTV cameras that were apparent just about everywhere I went in Sussex were creepy to say the least. I know from family and friends, and my fiance, that life in the UK is very different now from the one I left 13 years ago.

I have also lived in Surrey and would not dream of walking the streets there at night alone.

I have friends and family in all parts of the UK and they say the same no matter which part of the country they are living in. I know of people who have come home during the day to find intruders in their houses, I know of people who have been brutally bashed after finding children stealing plants from their gardens and throwing stones at their lounge windows. Petty theft from cars is rife over there, drugs are a common street corner experience and the gang culture is alive and well in Britain. If you honestly think that the UK is safer than Australia just ask a few people living there what they think. I know where I am safer, and it's not living in the UK.

Jase the ace

Gangs of some kind are everywhere, they just go unnoticed as they work on a different level to law abiding citiziens. As someone said earlier unless you are a drug dealer etc they are not going to bother with you.
As for walking your dog in Surrey and feeling safe that is because you are not aware of what goes on day to day, that is not to be patronising but as a serving police officer in Kent (CID)most people do not realise what goes on in the way of crime around them as it is just not reported. Its not interesting in general, you would also be surprised at the suspicious death rates among heroin/drug addicts which are investigated as a murder but go unreported as dead heroin addicts don't make good news.
Getting back to the gang thing, on the area I work there are a group of Triads, they do not come to our attention much and do not get involved in anything that means they get arrested, but I know that they are well known to the chinese restaurant community, in what capacity we will never know!

Doom and gloom brought to you by Jase.
PS dont have nightmares

WBB

on the whole you are probably right.

the u.k is heading downhill very very fast.

:scared:

chris hogan

Hiya Bill Wizzywozza is 100% right he/she could be talking about most of Birkenhead where I live.I with a lot of other dads where we used to live decided to do something about it ourselves.We were on the streets for about 18mths doing shifts to rid our estate of drug dealers as the police had more or less given up.
As a result of that some 10 years ago my kids are not safe to go out.As my eldest 2 are ready for joining the clubbing scene they are and will get some of the backlash.I was threatend with petrol bombs,baseball bats and had a shotgun put into the back of my head,something I do not want my kids to go through.I am fortunate that my wife is an Aussie so can take them away from this enviroment,some of my good mates are left here to live it,they do not blame us one iota and would do the same given the chance.I do not believe that Aus is Eutopia but the U.K. is far from that, especially for us.:lecture:

Jase the ace

Brave thing to do Chris but as a father I would do the same if I lived in that sort of environment.
As for the police, we are underfunded, understaffed and our hands are tied by stupid rules and regulations brought on by years of bad police officers doing what they want.
The scales of justice has to swing back the other way soon or it is going to be anarchy:lecture:
Im with you OZ or NZ can not be as bad as this.
Cheers
jase
PS Bring back the good old clipping around the ear

chris hogan

Jase I agree wholeheartedly it was never the beat bobbies who gave up it's the hierarchy(god help anybody who had a run in with the OSD on Merseyside).The day a copper couldn't give you a clip round the ear,was the day this country lost the plot it's on the same lines as the schools not being able to cane the pupils.
Disipline starts at a young age it's no good starting when they get to yoc or jail.It's the politically correct or compensation seeking yanks who started this ball rolling.

megawho

I take it then you didn't read Mr Mover's earlier rant about the kids in Adelaide...


http://britishexpats.com/forum/showt...5&pagenumber=5

There's always this opinion that 'things can't be any worse'....usually from people who don't live in OZ.

WBB

i think mr mover may wake up regreting a few of his words this morning.

mr mover

WRONG................................ MM

WBB

ding ding, round 2.....