MikeUK

An interesting point and one a quick look at the map will tell you that the vast majority of that 34 million live in very dense (US style) cities with large houses on small suburban lots. Don’t get me wrong the space is there, just outside the cities if you can afford it, or between them if you don’t mind the drive or separation
Think about the numbers, I think its 25% of the population of Canada live in the Golden Horse region of Ontario, a population density identical to England. Given that most cites in Canada are very similar in nature, you’ll find that population densities in most populated regions (cities) are very similar to England, it’s the empty gaps in between that skew the numbers.

The transport network and or infrastructure is worse here, not for lack of tax dollars, but just the huge distances stretch that number to breaking point. Then throw a Canadian winter at it and it falls apart.. We don’t have public transport as you would understand it, just some busses and trains for those that can’t afford cars, consider it transport for the underclasses.
Most of our cities suffer from traffic congestion, partly due to the one car per person mentality and partly due to lack of public transport, throw in the fact that we generally drive bigger cars and SUV’s and in some places ‘trucks’ as the norm, that congestion takes on a whole new level of toxicity.

By the way when the snow clears in spring, you get to see our litter and mess, although I do think Canadians are a bit better at cleaning it up, our real contribution to mess is kept up north and called the tar sands..

And while I’m being negative, Canadian’s generally appear to be friendly and caring, although I often consider this to be more show than reality. It all falls apart when you consider their attitude to the indigenous native population!

ExKiwilass

I think this is one of those 'depends where you are' things. According to my Edmonton peeps transit there is a. shite and b. for the poor, however that is far from true where I live in Van. Plenty of fancy Italian suit wearers going downtown on the 135 bus, skytrain etc. Transit, depending on where you are, can be v. good. This is one of those cultural differences I alluded to before. I take transit every day and I see a real mix of people.

Also, due to lack of snow we don't get the litter/mess thing after winter.

re: indigenous. sadly, this is a similar issue in Australia and to a much lesser extent NZ too. Colonization has been bad for the indigenous people in many countries.

Jeremy James

As suspected, VPD aren't recruiting, here are extracts from their reply. Et voila!

and....

So a fairly bleak appraisal of a potential Police transfer to Vancouver. If it happened it would take a monumental amount of energy, time and money to pull off. Can't say that I'm too disheartened by it to be honest as in a way it makes my mind up for me.

As 'The Thornes' have mentioned previously, her husband is an Officer with Calgary Police Service. I've fired off a similar e-mail to their recruitment team and await their answer. In the meantime, I'll PM you ('The Thornes') those questions as discussed. Thanks again.

All of your comments regarding the Canadian 'holiday' ethic makes interesting reading. I had no idea. If I were successful with the relevant Police Service I like to think they offer more than just a fortnights leave?!

@ MikeUK - Thanks also for your comments. You may feel that they're negative but you offer a different slant on matters; congestion, litter, population Vs landscape. Excuse the 'bone' question but I presume that you're an Ex-Brit? What is your profession and how long have you been in Canada, please?

Thanks,

JJ.

Ps - I was slightly disappointed with the VPD Officer responsible for Internaitonal Enquiries. Not being able to furnish me with their pension details was particularly poor and their attempts to put me in touch with an ex-British VPD Officer border on the apathetic side.

Almost Canadian

Not in Calgary.

Not in Calgary. There is congestion, but congestion in Calgary is far less than, say, congestion in Burton on Trent and would not compare to congestion in Manchester/Birmingham etc. or for that matter Cheltenham. I see Kiwilass has made a similar point.

Maybe people in Ontario don`t put their garbage away, they do in Calgary. England doesn`t have tar sands, but it does have open cast mining and "scars" such as the Newbury bypass, anyone remember Swampy?

What does the current population of Canada do to deserve such a comment. We won`t mention what the British did to the indigenous populations of their former colonies.

Almost Canadian

Unfortunately, any form of transfer from an occupation in the UK to a similar occupation in Canada is likely to involve a transitional period where salary loss and loss of seniority is to be expected. An expectation to be able to transfer painlessly and easily to a new employer is a tad optimistic. Most of us on here have endured such a transition.

Ask yourself this: How easily would a Canadian Police Officer be able to transfer to the Met at the moment? Would you expect them to retain their salary/seniority from the VPD?

dbd33

I've not been to Regina, or any of the other cities where the aboriginal population is considered to be a problem, but, in Toronto, I step over the aboriginal people as they lay across the pavement. Just last evening I restrained my dog from licking one such person. I personally don't much care about their state, but there is an argument that, in a caring society, the descendants of the original population of the country should not be living rough on city streets.

iaink

Im not sure I identify particulary with the holiday ethic, its very employer dependent I suspect. Police officer will get more than two weeks anyway.

As for mikes observations there is much truth in them. The SE may be crowded, but there are stil remarkable tracts of green land that I hadnt really noticed until a recent visit. The footpaths everywhere, it doesnt happen here. My Father gets around the SE mostly by public transit, he rarely drives now.

Traffic can be bad, but it can be bad here. Things like traffic news cutting in on the radio there you take for granted (not to mention freeview and the like too), nothing like that here. I was able to drive more or less non stop from Bedford to Fife on the motorways and back, and around the M25 to Surrey and back, and up to Sheffield with no hold ups at all, its not all doom and gloom, through all those stunningly varied landscapes, with all those regional quirks. You would have to drive for a week here to experience similar variety.

If you have a decent job and live in a decent area and have a network of friends there then you owe it to yourself to think long and hard about what you are potentially giving up.

Life for kids depends on the parents more than the location, I met many happy settled kids on my trip back, their parents would be nuts to take a leap of faith on a move to Canada for the sake of better skiing and a larger house to clean. But once that "grass is greener" genie is out of the bottle is very very hard to push it back in again...

MikeUK

I'm an Ex-Brit married to a Canadian with two Canadian son’s, I’m a senior scientist for a major North American brewer, so you could say I have one of those good jobs every bodies dreaming of finding when they get here, and you’d be right. I’ve been here a total of about nine years, two in London ON a smaller city according to Canadians but more of a large town, and the last 7 years in the GTA some in suburban Brampton which is best described as a cultural melting pot with the visual appeal of Milton Keynes, and more recently in Cheltenham in the Caledon region which I would describe as very pleasant on the eye, if not the pocket.

One upside of my profession is that I get to travel and work in many locations around North America so you get to see many of the places warts and all. I have also had the luxury of taking a road trip around eastern Canada and driving from Toronto to Alaska, so I’ve seen quite a bit of Canada cities and the vast empty places too.

el_richo

It's only good if the route favours your commute and/or you live downtown (Vancouver). The lack of variation and extensive usability in Greater Vancouver is what makes it crappola.


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ExKiwilass

Yup. My commute now that I go east sucks ass. But at least I can use transit, as opposed to having none, and actually the route is very scenic and relaxing.

JonboyE

Two weeks is the minimum an employer must offer. In some industries it is also normal for workers but it is not something that seems to be an issue for most Canadians.

It is very common to negotiate more if you are in a more senior position. This just depends whether or not the employer wants you more than you want the job.

From what I gather the terms and conditions of employment of police officers are much better than the legal minimum. I think you will find that, one way or another, you could end up with quite a bit more than two weeks.

iaink

Doesnt change the fact that its very expensive to go anywhere, and that anywhere with sun and sand will be a fairly long trek from the West Coast.

MikeUK

Do you really think that Calgary is that different from all the other Canadian cities???
As for your example of Burton on Trent, given that it has only two bridges over a river and a population split over both sides, it has significantly worse traffic congestion than many other towns its size. I’ve driven through most Canadian cities, morning and evening rush, they’re very much on par (maybe except Calgary which I admit I’ve never driven in, I’m there in August I’ll save my opinion for later).

Nobody said England was pure, just that Canada has its dirt too. I’ve seen the big “grown over” slag heaps in the midlands and the welsh valleys

And yes England did some shity thing during the occupations of the colonies, but I’m on about what Canada does now (or doesn’t) and how it treats it native population now.. and Having spent t some time on a reserve( where my wife used to teach) and actually met and talked to people there. Yes, the current population do deserve such a comment, partly due to their indifference to the squalid conditions and lack of support, and partly due to their desire for the native to go away and give up what little of their land they have left for development !

Jeremy James

Agreed, I was merely after clarification/confirmation. Interestingly, a probationer VPD Officer starts on the equivalent of roughly £36,500. That is the same salary as a London based Officer with six to seven years service. The disparity in pay is encouraging I have to say.

No expectation on my part, in fact I agree with you and would go so far to say that such a thought borders on the naive. My point in case is the number of hurdles to clear and hoops to jump through before I could even apply to the VPD are numerous. My understanding is that permanent residency is maintained by living in Canada for two years in a five year period. If I'm not employed as a Police Officer, which is where the majority of my skill-set sits, how do I support my family?

I recall a process that Calgary Police had that allowed current serving British Police Officers to bypass this requirement. The ability to transfer straight into said Force would be far easier than having to make ends meet via other forms of [lesser paid] employment.

In answer to your first question, I would say relatively easily... that was until the UK went bust and the Metropolitan Police Service has decided to cease recruitment and empty the pot of all persons who'd passed the application/assessment/interview/medical phase and we're waiting for a start date. Regarding the ease of sliding in at the same point they'd left the UK/Canada, most defininetly not. It was simply a question I wanted confirmed so that when I eventually present all of this research to Mrs JJ () I'll have a firm answer for her... because these are some of the things she'll ask!

Thanks,

JJ.

ExKiwilass

Hawaii? California?