Absolutely, I wish life was as simple as that for me but sitting here in Birmingham I am missing the family so badly. I understand they are old enough quote but why is it everyone needs the children to leave home asap. I know they are able to survive but it is me that cannot, my problem no one else's!

Yep, if human behaviour really really was as simple as "Just do it," we'd all be fit nonsmokers with low body fat, and wouldn't touch a drop of alcohol. And we wouldn't be tormented by any doubts that what we are doing is right.

Maybe if I had not gone through so many difficulties with my one son I may feel different, unfortuantely I do not. Tell me what is the secret for dealing with life in such a straight road ahead. You have had the same experience I am gathering beings as though it so simple for you, I have a feeling of guilt wish I did not but it is there.

With regards to the children leaving home at an early age I have so many friends over here in the UK who still have their children with them. Why the rush for them to be gone? I guess I am one of those moms who lives for their kids stupid as it may sound to you I am gathering but I am over here for my elderly father who is on his own and because he did for me when I was young I am here for him now permanently or not I have never been made to feel I needed to leave the nest and that is why I am here and I am sure not going to do that to my guys

Hi JLT....I know exactly how you feel. I left my only child, my 30 year old daughter, in England to come back to Canada, and I still can't shake the feeling that I have "abandoned" her! She assures me she's just fine, and that's not how she sees it......she then says she misses me and her dad so much and wishes we were not so far away........this is just one of the reasons I feel the pull of the UK so strongly, and am working on going Home this year!
I don't think anyone should ever feel bad or guilty for wanting to be near their children; my Mum and Dad, both in their late-80's miss me like crazy........I'm still their 'child" after all

Came across an episode of "Wanted Down Under - Revisited" (or whatever it's called when they go back a year later). I usually never watch those programs but the family was from Warrington (I have a Warrington connection) so I sat through a half hour or so. They showed the family the video clips of family saying how much they miss them, and the dad read a card from his mum/kid's grandmother. There were tears in the whole family's eyes and you could tell what a wrench it is for expats who have parents/grandparents left behind who miss them. I've been lucky (I suppose) in that I haven't had parents and grandparents to worry about (they all died either long before I left the UK or shortly afterwards). Although losing my Dad and remaining grandparent shortly after going overseas was very difficult, I'm not sure how I would have dealt with two parents and four grandparents living back in the UK ... so I feel for anyone who does.

Hi to everybody. I'm not british but I'm immigrant in Canada also and I have few questions if you can help me with some ideas. If you leave Canada after a while.. let's say 5-7years, do you get any pension? If you will get, do you have to file taxes every year till you retire? And the last one question. Do you have to get citizenship in order to get pension even if you were permanent resident?
Thanks for your help!

You might get more responses if you post on the Canada forum. Many people over there don't check this part of the board.

Anyone who is 'scared' of living in the uk again please remember that the canadian murder rate is 1.9 compared to 1.1 in the uk. Having said that I am im the process of moving to Canada, looking for an adventure if nothing else :-)

First time on the board, but I've lurked here for a while.

While I feel sorry for you, maybe you thought that since you were from the UK you would get better treatment then the other immigrants in Canada? I guess you now appreciate how difficult it is for other people to move shop and live in a foreign country. At least you are lucky enough to be able to return, but people from other countries don't necessarily have that option, particularly if they are moving there for a better quality of life.

Sadly Canada is good at one thing, discriminating regardless of your accent or the colour of your skin Though I'm guessing you are still getting better treatment then the South Asian immigrants.

I'd like to say that this is quite the most baffling string of words I've seen in a long time. If it means that Canada cleverly discriminates between "good" and "bad" immigrants, why is that sad? If Canada doesn't discriminate based on accent or skin colour then why are Sri Lankans singled out?

Is this "Canadian English" or is it gibberish?

You are so right thanks for your message you made me feel so much better. I know whatever choice I make the boys will be away from me in time to come. When you say you are trying to get back to the UK do you mean on a permanent basis? Also, where are you in Ontario I am in Markham just being nosey?!!

I'm sorry you were unable to decipher the English that I used there, however that doesn't mean that sentence was illegible. Canada discriminates against all people equally. That being said there are of course a lot of individual variations, based on the people actually doing the discriminating. So perhaps the colour of your skin/accent doesn't warrant the same response to all people. Now is that "BritEnglish" enough for you mate?

How are Sri Lankans singled out?

Not really, it could only be illegible if you were to write it down and one cannot "discriminate equally". Are you saying that, in Canada, the state doesn't discriminate but people do? If so I suppose it's accurate but banal.


That was my question to you. I would not have thought that to be the case.

No, I think you missed the point - There are a lot of laws put into place to discriminate against Immigrants in Canada.

For example if you were to have a medical degree even from the UK, you couldn't practice in Ontario without at least one year of experience, in Canada. Which is very difficult to get, unless you enter into a training program.

Other commonwealth countries recognise UK qualifications as equivalent to their own. Or would at least give you some sort of conditional registration.

So therefore this is systematic discrimination involved.

On the flip side some people ie. the employers do give preference to immigrants from say the UK or Europe to those from other locations ie. South Asia/Asia.

I don't believe this to be so, do you have an example of such a law?

That's primarily the policy of a professional body rather than a law. It's not a policy that directly docriminates against immigrants, it simply says that in order to practise medicine in Ontario you must have some training in medicine in Canada; it treats all people who don't have medical experience in Canada equally, regardless of their place of origin.


Examples please. I often see job adverts saying "an equal opportunity employer" but don't recall seeing one saying "preference will given to EU citizens".