Expat living

[woolley]

Having been here for decades I never thought I would leave. We have always felt welcome, played an active part in Island life and feel very much at home. Still think we probably won't ever leave, but I must admit that we are a bit shaken by what is proposed on state pensions with the break of the reciprocal agreement with the UK. It is hard to put the change into words, but the possible repercussions for people with NI contributions split between here and the UK do have the effect of making one feel a diminished sense of belonging. I know others who feel the same way. Perhaps this is the intention?

[GD4ELI]

And there's the future of the NHS to consider - I bet it'll be contributory in ten years from now, also the problems replacing senior staff could mean more trips to Liverpool whereas any UK trip is of course much easier.

 

NHS provision was also a consideration on my part although touch wood I've been in good health all my life.

 

I don't think it'll be a fun place in the future - visit for ten day's holiday - yes.

[woolley]

And there's the future of the NHS to consider - I bet it'll be contributory in ten years from now, also the problems replacing senior staff could mean more trips to Liverpool whereas any UK trip is of course much easier.

 

NHS provision was also a consideration on my part although touch wood I've been in good health all my life.

 

I don't think it'll be a fun place in the future - visit for ten day's holiday - yes.

I think that the conditions of service across the public sector will equalise with the spending cuts coming after the UK election so I don't see the recruitment of health staff to be such an issue to be honest.

[spook]

I fancy that in the UK the NHS is too much of a sacred cow for much to be done to, at least to any serious extent though hopefully there will be a big time clamp down on abuse by health tourists.

 

I do expect and hope that the whole matter of 'benefits' will get some very serious attention with immigrants and so called asylum seekers access to our taxpayer funded resources VERY seriously curtailed plus a clamp down on the 'won't work' scroungers as a start.

 

I also expect (hope) to see a lot of benefits being made subject to means testing and best of all would be limiting child benefit to two kids only and no payment for kids not resident in the UK.

 

But changes to pension rights for members of the essential services beyond extending the age when pensions become payable? Maybe moves towards changes, but I simply can't see any sudden or step changes in the short term and the fan being well and truly hit on the Island well in advance of any significant changes within the UK.

 

No matter what, in the words of Tevye (Fiddler on the Roof) "It's a changing world, Golda. "

 

We better track the changes in the best way that we can.

[Gladys]

All interesting stuff Spook. I understand entirely your comments about not feeling a part of wherever you land and the homesickness. I lived in the UK for a total of 20 years split between uni and working. Despite marrying and having my children in the UK, I always felt I would return to the island and have now been here for a very happy 13 years. I cannot think of anything that would take me back to the UK.

[woolley]

I cannot think of anything that would take me back to the UK.

Ben-my-Chree?

[wrighty]

Having been here for decades I never thought I would leave. We have always felt welcome, played an active part in Island life and feel very much at home. Still think we probably won't ever leave, but I must admit that we are a bit shaken by what is proposed on state pensions with the break of the reciprocal agreement with the UK. It is hard to put the change into words, but the possible repercussions for people with NI contributions split between here and the UK do have the effect of making one feel a diminished sense of belonging. I know others who feel the same way. Perhaps this is the intention?

I don't expect to see out my retirement here. Within the next decade my kids will go off to university and may not return. If they all settle back in the UK I can't see we'd stay here in our retirement.

 

I've been here almost 10 years now, and have no regrets about coming - the island's been good for me and my family. I don't agree with all the naysayers on here about how the IOM is going down the pan - it's just not what I see from day to day in terms of business activity across many sectors. I do think though that the cost of living here is higher than UK, and that and the cost and hassle of getting off island neutralises some of the headline tax advantages of being here.

[Gladys]

 

 

I cannot think of anything that would take me back to the UK.

Ben-my-Chree?

Yes, I did think that would cue some 'boat-in-the-morning' comments!

[spook]

Liked the Ben-my-Chree joke!

 

When it ones to apparent daily business activity on the Island I suspect that what is taking place is based on the Flywheel effect and that the next thing to be observed will be a Dead Cat Bounce, the latter being the last thing to take advantage of if you can in order to mitigate the losses that will then follow.

 

Everyday shopping over here is quite a lot different from how it was 'at home'. As well as markets where fruit and veg in season can be bought at very low prices compared with the Big Four supermarkets but also in almost ever case very much better quality, even if one does sometimes have to scrape half a field off root veg!

 

But also in the markets you can buy a great deal of haberdashery, curtains, carpets, even in some cases furniture and although the choice is by definition limited the prices for the same as can be bought in normal shops are much less.

 

This afternoon we've got some shopping to do, disinfectant, cat food, cat litter, in short the non food consumable items and which can be bought at deep discount places such as Poundland. Saves a fortune over buying from a supermarket. We'll also be going to the local Lidl (pronounced 'leedal' and not as it reads) where although some of the brand names may be unusual the quality is usually as good if not better than the Big Boys.

 

So another factor when it comes to living off-Island is the difference I how we shop, where we shop, and the difference in both price and quality.

 

On the down side here in Norfolk I find the run of the mill bread shops churn out cakes and other cooked goods that are ---- not to my taste and generally speaking not a patch on what can be bought on the Island. There also seems to be some obsession with the use of synthetic cream In cakes over the real stuff and it's 'orrid.

 

Also chips.

 

Now I LIKE a bag of chips and for me Peel used to have fish and chip shops of the finestkind. A bag of chips, a fresh plaice, and a pot of mushy peas with chip shop vinegar (always tasted better) pure ambrosia, but over here the chips are almost universally cooked not in oil but instead in dripping. And it's horrible. There are a couple of chip shops that use oil but they cook chips that have been pre cooked rather than fresh spuds to what you gain on the swings ---

 

Anyway gorra go. Again on the down side the grass will need cutting so that means buying a can of petrol for the lawn mower too.

[woolley]

You have to watch the discounters though. There are certainly loss leaders but much of the stuff is also lighter in weight or not of great quality. Having said that, it has been proven that some of Aldi's own label food is better than Tesco's. With my opinion of Tesco, that does not surprise me.

[NeverAgain]

Spook would it not be more beneficial for you to use a blog rather than use this thread in international news section? I was expecting it to about someone living in Spain, health agreement etc

[ScotsAlan]

Just remember - you can travel the world over and you will invariably find that most British expats are twats who left their own country because it wasn't good enough for them. Only to find their new country wasn't good enough for them either. So a twat in one country just ends up as a twat in another country.

 

Spot on boredom :-)

 

I live on the other side of the world. Have a wife, a child and a mortgage.

 

Whenever I meet a foreigner here who calls themself an "ex-pat", the alarm bells start ringing..... "knob end alert... knob end alert... knob end alert".

 

Honestly, last week I was at a house party and I met an American "ex-pat" who was so racist I was left speachless, as was another ex Manx resident who I was with.

 

It's Ironic, because most of the "expats" I know in China are actually illegally working here (non working visa). But yet they go on and on about how migrants into their country refuse to integrate. They blame Obama, they blame Merkal, but they never actually stop and look at themselves. They detest how the world is allowed to change without their permission. They are angry, and they seek out places in the world where they think they will still be treated as a king.

 

This is the reason why I defend migrants and religions. Because I am doing the same as the "migrants" do. I am a migrant. There is no difference between a Chinese guy migrating to the UK, than a UK guy migrating to China. It's the same thing. If anyone thinks otherwise then they need to think differently. They need to stop and think..."why do I think there is a difference?"

 

So, if we take the above info as a background, why do I defend migration and religious freedom? Well, because I am affected. Have I integrated into Chinese society? Hell no. My language abilty is limited. But yeah, expats don't need to integrate, do they? Am I subject to racism? Of course. I get it all the time. I look different, our daughter looks different. We get stupid stuff all the time. Is it a hate filled racism? Nah.

 

The think is, the big thing... my group of friends and associates here are all like minded. The people I mix with I mean. Not the lunatic white power nutters that seem to be scattered everywhere. They are Chinese, Middle eastern, African, European. We all have differerent targets in life. But we all have one thing in common.... we want the politicians and the religious leaders to fuck off and let us do our own thing.

 

If that's how the migrants to China feel, is it not right that migrants to the IOM should feel the same?

 

Ha ha, I knew a guy from Morcombe that lived on the island. He claimed to be an expat.... tosser.

[Tugger]

This isn't a universal truth. In Hong Kong, European economic migrants are referred to by locals as "expats" (as well as "gweilos"). Referring to yourself as one is not a political statement at all, just a recognition of how one is viewed by the local society

[ScotsAlan]

This isn't a universal truth. In Hong Kong, European economic migrants are referred to by locals as "expats" (as well as "gweilos"). Referring to yourself as one is not a political statement at all, just a recognition of how one is viewed by the local society

 

Tugger, you are trying to localise it. Stop and think. A person from HK is no different from a person from Ethoiopia. See what I mean? We are all people. We are all the same. And as soon as we stop seeing each other as being different, then the sooner we can get to work to make everyone truely equal.

 

[woolley]

 

This isn't a universal truth. In Hong Kong, European economic migrants are referred to by locals as "expats" (as well as "gweilos"). Referring to yourself as one is not a political statement at all, just a recognition of how one is viewed by the local society

 

Tugger, you are trying to localise it. Stop and think. A person from HK is no different from a person from Ethoiopia. See what I mean? We are all people. We are all the same. And as soon as we stop seeing each other as being different, then the sooner we can get to work to make everyone truely equal.

 

 

Idealism. It will never happen, I'm afraid.