HBG

The official Spanish numbers for British expats who have left Spain in 2014 have just been released and show that the numbers for 2014 will be even higher than those for 2013 when 90.000 expats left, some one in ten of the British expat population.

This is not an anti Spanish rant nor a personal one but merely an attempt to have a sensible discussion on such an important topic for all of us on this forum.

My own theories revolve around Spanish bureaucracy and taxes, mainly, with many small minor variations, but I would not wish to put anyone off from coming to live in such a lovely country, which I have enjoyed for many years.

davidinspain

The tax on UK second homes will be a factor for some I'm sure.

jimenato

Hello H - good to see you.

Do you have a source for the figures?

Dick Dasterdly

Hi HBG
Happy New Year, Good to hear from you again.
I think your theories are pretty close to the mark, however I wonder how many of those you mention have actually upped sticks and left for good and how many have instead opted for non resident status either within or outside the present regulations ?

johnnyone

Hi HBG, glad you are back after some time. I do miss some of the old posters, especially those that could not debate without getting personal (not you). Used to be much more fun watching posters fall out and start bickering etc. No fun for the Mods though.

I suspect that the majority that return to the UK are those expats that have to earn a living rather than living on pensions and savings.

As has been said on many occasions Spain is a great place if you have money but not if you don't.

Do the stats. get broken down into working and non-working?

EMR

If it is true that these numbers of Brits returned to the UK plus from other countries it does shoot a big hole in the UKIP claim regarding the nett increase in the UK population being exclusively due to immigrants.
You could in theory take at least 100,000 off the figures.
EG if the UK population increased by 250,000 and 100,000 were returning Brits etc
I do not think that there is any reliable source of these figures

la mancha

But it doesn’t shoot a big hole in the UKIP claim regarding the increase in immigration into the UK, does it?

Forget theories and EG’s. The UK population is increasing due to mass immigration. Of course there is no reliable source for these figures. We only have Coalition false promises and figures that are released on a Friday afternoon or those that the press manage to dig out. A far more reliable source would be to walk into a health centre.

EMR

Simple mathmatics aside, you make my point there is no reliable information from any source as to the number of Brits returning to the UK, the number of immigrants the effects of 100,000 returning Brits on local rescources etc etc.
Howver you approajh such figures they can be twisted to suit your own viewpoints.

la mancha

You miss one important point. The returning Brits paid into the system before moving abroad and deserve all they can get once they return to the UK. They have paid for it and it is their birthright. Twisted figures apart, the reality is massive immigration, not from returning Brits but from all over the globe. I like your take on trying to blame returning Brits for straining local resources. It will not work.

EMR

I did nothing of the sort and payments asside another 100.000 users of the UK health education benefits etc is a strain on the UK. Simple maths if 40% of the nett increase in the UK population was returning Brits then what you call massive immigration was not massive at all. Lack of government planning and spending over the last few decades is the cause immigration has just revealed how serious the problem is. The problems would still exist. As have said I do not believe any of the figures because there is no way of confirming them one way or another.

jimenato

I have been in several UK health centres in the last couple of months and didn't notice anything that would indicate mass immigration at all.

So according to your preferred measure, that's that!

jimenato

Incidentally I for one would prefer it if this thread concentrated on exodus from Spain rather than immigration to the UK.

EMR

Whar exodus ????. Where is the evidence.? Are those who come out for a year or two enjoying the summers in on the costas who then realise you have to grow up part of an exodus ?. The only true figure is that of those who had once decided that Spain or Portugal etc was to be their permanent home and for what ever reason are now back in the UK..
How do you measure them ?

jimenato

That's why I asked HBG for a source - the exodus might be real or perceived.

Or even non-existent.

ETA I can't find any stats news in a quick search.

la mancha

There you have it. Returning Brits are part of the cause of the problems in the NHS, housing, schools etc. And 40% of the immigrants to the UK are returning Brits. But hold on a moment…where does this figure of 40% returning Brits come from? A Spanish source? A Spanish local, regional, countrywide newspaper? On Spanish TV? I am curious to know. (HBG, can you enlighten us?) Anyway, until we do know let us look at some serious figures.

Net migration figures to the UK for the year ending June 2014 shows that the number of Brits leaving the UK was 133,000. And the number of Brits returning to the UK was 83,000. So we have a net migration to the UK of -50,000 Brits. Yes, that’s right, MINUS 50,000, meaning more left than arrived. So much for your reasoning that the nasty Brits are to blame for the uncontrolled immigration into the UK.

MigrationWatchUK | Latest Immigration Statistics

You are telling me, what was it now, ‘Simple maths if 40% of the nett increase in the UK population was returning Brits then what you call massive immigration was not massive at all.’, when in fact MORE Brits are leaving the UK than arriving.