cricket1again

Yesterday I was at an event where I met quite a few newly arrived Brits. They all said I was mad for returning to the UK because it had gone to the dogs. When i asked them to elaborate, they didn't really give much of a definitive answer. Some said the weather (wait till they experience Queenslands suffocating heat and mozzies), a few said their children had no life in the UK because they couldn't play outside, (don't know if they realise but it's not advisable to be outside here between 10am and 3pm).
A few said crime, some said the UK was far too expensive.
Anyway, nothing that can't be said for here really.

I was just wondering if anyone can say in what way the UK 'has gone to the dogs'?

kporte

I can say it is bollocks. Standard phrase people trot out, without any basis for it.
I am going back next month and will report back.

Deutschmaster

Bet they read the Daily Mail

cricket1again

They had just arrived and thought the Gold Coast was wonderful. Wait till they start paying for the privilege of just living this 'dream' lifestyle.

kporte

Got to blame the Brits. the negative views that some say the Aussies have about the uk, are likely to be generated from people like this.
I don't understand the need to bash the uk.

asprilla

I think that many Brits are starting to believe that the motherland's best years are behind her. Whether this is true or not, is merely a matter of opinion.

Why do people talk badly about the UK? The following points come up time and time again;

1) immigration
- an open policy with the EU permits citizens from all member countries to travel freely between borders. Some Brits feel that this is a bad thing.
- Britain has long been a target for illegal immigrants. Daily Mail readers will tell you it is because of all the free benefits that they receive - a grant for a car, food vouchers, luxury accommodation, free nights out at the local pub, you name it, they get it. But perhaps the real reason is because Britain is seen as a place where people are respected, can feel safe, and can work to earn a good living.
- multiculturalism. Many people find it easy to accept immigrants who "assimilate" and do british things like eat curries and get drunk, and speak english. But they are extremely fearful of people who move in next door but do not partake in these quintessentially british pursuits.

2) crime
- people in the UK are lead to believe that the streets are dangerous, and getting worse every day. When in reality their streets are probably no more dangerous than those in many other developed countries.

3) health
- the age old issue of the NHS and how it has been "at breaking point" for the past 20yrs or so...

4) weather
- Lets not kid ourselves here, the weather in the UK is generally terrible. On the plus side, this does make the nice days all that more enjoyable and does mean that the countryside is spectacular in many areas.

5) economy
- Recessions mean that some people lose their jobs, many others lose bonuses, peoples' wealth goes backwards, their businesses suffer and they generally feel miserable. But these events don't last forever so the current recession should not contribute towards the "going to the dogs" belief.
- having said that, the UK has taken a big hit in this recession. A large part of the UK's economy is dependent on financial services and the flow-on effect from those employed in this sector. This may have a long term negative effect on confidence.

6) Youth of today...
- Many brits feel there is a gulf between youths and adults, with little respect being shown by either side towards one another.




Personally I don't believe that the UK is going towards the dogs at all, I do however believe that there needs to be a renewed focus on education and the importance of enabling young people to communicate with others (of all ages and races) with respect. I think that there needs to be more done to discourage the drinking culture. I think that they could bring in some singapore-style fines for littering. And perhaps if they could add in a few more sunny days, many brits wouldn't feel bad about their lot.

cricket1again

I think the UK has issues but so does the rest of the modern world not least because we're all subject to the same global influences.
Anyone who leaves the UK expecting to find Utopia in a foreign country is perhaps going to be disappointed.
I can understand why some parents might think their children are better off here. The outdoor space is nice but the weather is still an issue. It is dangerous exposing a child's skin to a no ozone layer climate.

Australia has all the same social problems. I'm not sure if their quite as visible because they are more spread out over a much larger land mass but oh boy, some of the crimes and the inhumanity that happen here are pretty awful.

Nu-Shooz

Makes me laugh when they justify their move to OZ...i feel so sad for them. Obviously they may have a very happy life there, good on them i say, but for some they don't know nothing yet hehehe .

I went to the dogs once. It was called Perth.

dunroving

It's just a figure of speech.

What it means is that Asprilla is pretty much on target, but that some people just can't express themselves as eloquently or as objectively as him (her? sorry, don't grequent the Oz boards and no gender indicated in personal profile...), that's all.

jmh

There is a bash Britain culture in the UK which people just seem to accept. They go abroad on holidays to sunny places, come home and moan about how miserable Britain is. They assume everyone else is happier, which is funny, because in my experience they're not really. They imagine Neighbours is a fly on the wall documentary.

TraceyW

From the viewpoint of someone who has just returned to the UK I am convinced the media play a huge role in portraying the "UK has gone to the dogs" image that is very much alive and kicking here. We purposefully don't by newspapers during the week, we buy The Times on a Saturday to get real news...and we don't watch the news on the tele. Yes, 'head in sand' comes to mind, but it works for us!

However, there are places, just like anywhere in the world, where I wouldn't live if you paid me some serious dosh, but being very lucky, I don't have to live there. The yob culture is very much alive and kicking here and appears more in your face than it ever was in Perth. I put that down to the fact I work in a pretty chavvie city every day and I didn't work in Oz, so therefore I am exposed to it more.

It does worry me the kind of society we're raising our kids in here, but hell, we worried about that in Oz, and we'd probably think the same if we moved to Outer Mongolia, that's just what being a parent is all about eh?

cricket1again

I think any parent who leaves Britain believing it's the only country with social issues which may affect their children and that Australia is somehow exempt from such influences must be very blinkered.

I can only really comment on life here on the Gold Coast, which is where I have lived for the last 5 years. I can see the initial attraction. On the surface, it does look and appear like the ultimate fun lifestyle for the whole family. But it is facade. The corruption and crime is well covered up during the day. It's night mostly when it emerges. I wouldn't want my children being brought up here.

I've lived in some really nice places in the UK and always knew my neighbours who were good, ordinary people. I live in an upmarket area here but my neighbours are very different to those back in the UK. They live in huge mansions, drive Porsches, give you a fake smile as the emerge from their integral garage, then they go about their business. Mostly crooked dealings and corruption on a massive scale.
It's just not quite as obvious as it is in the UK but it's sinister and dangerous all the same.
Drugs, prostitution, shootings, stabbings, beatings are all right on the doorstep.
In all my days in the UK, I never encountered any of this.

The newspaper coverage tends to gloss over the real crime. It's bad for raking in the tourist revenue and the money from all those cashed up Brits coming over keeping businesses and the property market afloat so that the local property developers can do more dodgy land deals.

There is a good lifestyle here but there's nothing to do after you've sipped one more coffee at one of the breakfast bars overlooking miles of boring skyline dotted with high rise concrete apartments.

The sleazy side absolutely shines bright. Gold digging women of all ages wearing scantily clad attire are on the lookout for any single man who might be of substance. Consequently, the young girls tend to follow this tacky influence. Only last week, a 9 year old girl told me she was saving her pocket money, not for a bike or computer game but for breast implants!

Yep, sure am looking forward to coming home to Britain.

sans

We had a dog show here at the wkend and there was lots of people there......

dunroving

Or maybe it's just a tendency to bash wherever you're leaving ... I mean, there's plenty of Oz-bashing goes on here by Brits who either want to come back from Oz or recently came back ... so it seems like Brits who have recently moved to Oz tend to bash the UK, and the Brits who have recently moved back from Oz (or are about to) tend to bash Oz.

Just a thought ...

kporte

FAIR POINT