oh yes, I do agree with you. I'm not saying UK was Utopia. There have always been the rough areas and betting shops etc. it's just that it seems all the bad things are spreading out dramatically and the good things have dwindled. Yes, we have always had the occasional potholes but now we have whole swathes of roads full of potholes and people always complaining of damage to their cars and having to sue the council. We lived in Africa for ten years so believe me I know third world conditions when I see them and we seem to be rapidly becoming one here. There is definitely way too much housing development around here..they keep building masses of new housing estates but never any new schools or doctor's surgeries. People around here have to book a GP appointment six weeks in advance...just ridiculous. And what I find most depressing is the amount of ads on TV for money loans (aimed at people who may have an unexpected repairs to pay for and can't wait until the next pay day) and online gambling... it just seems to be going back to the old days when people had to pawn their suits so the family could eat that week..all a sign of poverty which was never overtly apparent for many decades in the UK. I don't think it's got anything to do with Brexit..this has been happening over the last 20 years...it's just a sign of the times generally in capitalist societies. the other thing that scares the life out of me is the total dumbing down of the population. So much absolutely mindless reality drivel on tv. Before we left for NZ there were countless adult education centres around here where you could learn almost anything you wanted to for very reasonable fees. Now it's almost impossible to find a centre and classes to improve one's knowledge without having to pay hundreds or even thousands of pounds. I know I am painting a very black picture but this is truly the way that I can see how things have gone downhill around here. I can see that these things have declined gradually over the years so people living here haven't noticed so much but having been away for 13 years and coming back, the difference hits me like a stack of bricks. Maybe we were just spoilt and now facing reality. It's certainly not all bad though and of course there are still many good things about UK which I still think are unbeatable otherwise we'd be back on the first plane to NZ. I do wonder though that if the people and companies making most money actually paid their fair share of taxes instead of using loopholes to avoid tax, how much more money would be in the system to provide the services required and that have been cut so drastically over the years...

Sorry if it’s already been posted but someone sent me this article by a British journalist living in NZ who is returning to the UK. An interesting read:
https://thespinoff.co.nz/society/28-...o-new-zealand/

Interesting reading indeed, and mirrors my thoughts when in NZ almost entirely. Unfortunately, having returned to a dystopian UK it seems that rather than feeling I belong in both places I now no longer feel I really belong in either...

Hi. I’m new to the site. I joined just to comment on this thread!

I am from the Lake District and have lived in NZ for 5 years in feb. Met my kiwi partner in Lancaster in 2014, moved to NZ with him in 2015, Had twins in 2016 and now pregnant with our third (due June 2020).

We have been back home in 2017 & just recently in August and when I am there I feel so happy and complete, I dread coming back to NZ and when I’m back I just feel deflated. I am so lonely here, I don’t like anything about NZ - apart from the summer weather - which I can do without. I miss my mum, dad and grandma and everything about the UK.
For 5 years I’ve said how much I miss it and I’d move home in a heartbeat.

My partner LOVES the UK and wouldn’t mind living there either. After coming back from UK in September I said, I need to move back for my sanity and I’d rather do it before the boys get much older. He somewhat agreed but since then has gone on about how he is pretty well set up here, can take over his fathers business, has a house, has land to build another, how it would break his parents hearts etc etc.

Not forgetting my parents hearts are broken not having us close with their first grandchildren (partner has two siblings who both live in NZ - there’s chance for them to have more grandchildren here but not for my parents as my sister lives in aus, has no strong desire to have children and hates the UK) so I don’t think that’s a fair comment to make as they have had us so close (living next door) for 5 years.

That’s another thing that restricts us here in NZ too, we can’t even move from here, from right next door to his parents. The thought of living here for the rest of my life makes me sick and full of constant worry and anxiety.

I feel my partner does not understand/or want to try to understand how I feel at all. Having another child has really made me feel EVEN more strongly and I already felt so strongly before. My partner has said I have to pay for his visa, because he paid for mine (which is fair enough) but I am a cleaner 2x a week and he works full time, so it would take me 104632026years to save $3000. It honestly breaks my heart. All our money goes on saving for our next trip for UK (every two years) & we don’t go on any holidays/trips in between because we can’t afford it (unless it’s a wedding of friends)

Speaking of friends, I have no strong desire to see any friends here in NZ & only meet up because I feel I have to, most of the time. I feel if I don’t, people will stop bothering with me and they already don’t bother with me too much cos everyone’s busy.
It sounds so horrible but if I was to move tomorrow and not say bye/need to see them in NZ again, I don’t think I’d be bothered. I am on medication for depression and anxiety and go to bed early every night, once my kids are in bed, because i feel better sleeping to just end the day. I am only happy when spending time with my children, when I’m working or they’re not with me(at grandparents or daycare) I feel so so lost, lonely and just angry.

I could go on and on and on. I’d move back to the UK in a heartbreat with no hesitation at all. I hate everything about my life here and know I would be 100000% happier in the UK, meaning I would be a better, healthier, happier person and mother. I feel like I snap and shout too much because i am so down. I feel like I’m waiting for my life to be over. I’m going to miss the best days of my children’s lives feeling like this and soon they’ll be gone, kids will move out and I will be alone , partner and I will probably be separated the way things are going.

if you’ve read this far, well done & Thankyou!