…or not. No sooner have the Commies won the UK election when we see articles like this one appearing:
Escape from Keir’s Britain with the experts’ definitive emigration guide: The best places for sunshine, big houses, high wages, no crime and top-notch healthcare – plus the hotspot with NO income tax
Of course, the smart money has already made that plan and the moolah has long ago flown over the white cliffs of Dover. But on to the list. Some of the countries are a lot more difficult to gain entry to, especially for permanent residence so getting there requires a lot of wishful thinking. I’m also assuming that the target market folks are either well-off retirees or else have remote-friendly work-from-home jobs where location is irrelevant.
European countries: Spain (a favorite already), Portugal (close second), France and Italy. Never been to Spain, don’t care much for Italy (except in the north, which is spendy) but I could certainly do southern France. Which is Mediterranean, as are Greece and Cyprus. I would have a serious problem with either, because I have a problem with non-Western European alphabets, and unlike many others, I would never insist that the host people have to learn my language. My problem, not theirs. (I should point out that this is not the typical attitude of most Brit expats.)
Sweden: what? I mean, winters, dude. Not to mention taxes (from the article: “Income tax varies depending on the local authority, ranging from 29-35 per cent. Earners above a certain income pay an additional 20 per cent.”
Canada: see Scandi countries above. And speaking of socialist countries…
Oz/New Zealand: no language barrier (more or less), but fleeing Starmer’s nascent socialist regime for the established (and venal) ones in the Antipodes doesn’t seem like a decent exchange. (Hello, Covid lockdowns.)
South Africa: someone has a sense of humor. Except that South Africa is way beyond a joke. There’s a reason that Zimbabwe, Malawi and other African paradises aren’t on the list, and putting Seffrica on the list is simply a stupid nod to what the country used to be, and not what it is. A really smart guy once said to me, many years ago, “If I went to my CEO and suggested investing in South Africa, he’d fire me.”
Texas and Florida: leaving aside the almost impossible-to-crack legal difficulties of establishing U.S. residence, I am amused that only two states made the “cut”. (No Tennessee?) Whatever, I think the author has woefully underestimated the cost of living in both states. Then again, of aaaaaaallllll the countries on the list, once you’ve established residence in either TX or FL, you can buy a gun and protect you and yours without any problems at all. Which has to count for something.
So much for the Mail’s list.
Conspicuous by their absence from the list are some other countries.
Of course, one would think that Switzerland and Monaco would be obvious options, but they aren’t: cost of entry, cost of living, and some really high barriers to residence take them right out of the running. Basically, the guys who could afford to move there already have.
When it comes to bang for the buck, so to speak, the Caribbean or Central American countries like Domenica, Belize and the Virgin Islands stand out way ahead of, for example, Sweden. I’m amazed they weren’t on the list.
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