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Disastrous Sunak Govt Sniggers At German Recession
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- Опубліковано 29 гру 2023
- The UK government is happy to tell us that the German economy is in recession. This week I visited #aachen in Germany to see how things really are . I found the city to be quite prosperous and operating normally. Following #brexit the UK economy is struggling with far worse to come. #germany has also had problems especially following Putin's invasion of Ukraine but the economy is based upon manufacturing high quality engineering products and seems likely to rebound once the worldwide economy begins to pick up. I spoke with many people in Aachen who all appeared relatively optimistic for the German economy and seemed somewhat bemused at Brexit.
At the time a German colleague of mine asked quizzically "why would you vote to make yourself poorer ?"
Ask them why they voted to cut themselves off Russian cheap energy. Or did they really voted or some random guys appointed by US made this choice for them? Famous German pragmatism my аss.
@vazeuax are you sure you know what you are talking about? It seems you don't
I don't think people did , but that's the way it turned out the best ex PM Johnson could do was a No deal what so ever crash out .
@@marleneMS I'm pretty sure I am. Go educate yourself on how Von der Leiden or Stoltenberg came to power.
@@vazeuax Your second comment contradicts your first.
Can I come to Germany as a refugee, because Britain is persecuting my brain
If you have a job (or are rich) that is in high demand in the EU, you can apply for German citizenship. Thousands of Brits have done this.
As an ex UK business person I left to live in Germany 24 years ago because of the boom and bust economy, I have never regretted the move. I find the move even more justified now after seeing what the clowns running the UK have done. What surprises me most, that people just seem to except what has taken place. God only knows how you turn that mess around, where to begin.
Having now lived in southern Germany for 30 years, I can only echo your comments.
Brexit has been a disaster for UK trade, but it's been good for the EU: foreign investment has been switched from the UK to the EU, EU imports from the UK have been replaced by imports from other EU countries, and there's less competition for unskilled workers from Eastern European countries. We're losing a lot of financial services business to France and Ireland. You can see this in the stock market indices - the Dax index (Frankfurt) has gone up almost 60% in 5 years, the FTSE 100 has gone up 15% in 5 years: take into account inflation, as we're getting poorer and Germany is getting richer. The rich EU countries will not give up the benefits of Brexit that they're enjoying - they will not want us back.
Ich wünsche euch einen guten Rutsch ins neue Jahr 🥂 🚀
Me too. 40 years in Munich.
Go back to UK - are you kidding?
I don't know either, but accepting the reality that we are out of the EU and stop attempting to re-join would be a good start. The terms under which we would have to abide would surely be more disadvantageous to the UK, than the terms under which we departed.
Stop all internal squabbling and form a government that will pick up the undoubted challenges ahead.
The problem seems to me to be that there are too many influential people who have too much to lose. eg Position, promotion, career prospects, pensions, investments and all the other things that are out of reach to Joe Public. We need strong leadership and/or a strong opposition not afraid to move from the script given to them by their unseen puppet masters. We need to make Brexit a positive thing that the general population seems to want it to be. Then we may be in a position to negotiate a strong ECONOMIC bond with our continental brothers.
But the first step would be to cut out the unnecessary internal bickering and wrangling that make us a laughing stock across the world.
I am a Brit who moved near to Linz in 2010, just after David Cameron came to power and started on the slippery slope to Britain's demise. At the time my UK friends asked me: "What if it doesn't work out?" In retrospect the same question could have been asked of them. It is a sad thing to admit, but in terms of health care, the state of public services and transport etc. I am far better off here, than if I had remained in Britain. From my first days in Austria, I regularly travel over the border to Germany but also to Czechia or Slovakia. I am amazed how these former Eastern Bloc countries have prospered over this period. Towns like Budweiss have transformed to thriving communities - unlike the northern towns of Britain that I know such as, Nuneaton, Rotherham or Renfrew. When comparing the UK to European neighbours, It is not just the impact of Brexit that is the problem, but the massive increase in inequality, driven by the focus on the City and financial deregulation. In1980 30% of the UK working population were employed in manufacturing - now it is less than 13%. In Germany and Austria the level in manufacturing industries is still around 30%. If you just go round the Home counties - e.g. to Woking or Haslemere, the preferred residences of financiers - the revenue (often from dubious sources) flowing from the City's appears to be dripping off everything. But the more you get away from this toxic money sink, the more you find townships that are depleted and totally rundown due to decades without strong sources of income. And meanwhile the townships in former East Germany and Eastern Europe have rebuilt as the collective wealth has been shared more fairly.
Thatcher was the Pusher who dealt out the drug of privatisation and financial deregulation. Brexit (along with the current bunch of Thatcher's delinquent offspring) is the culmination of the addictive spiral of greed she instigated - the frantic thrashings of a sick, ghoulish and inhuman affluent minority, unable to face cold-turkey and kick their totally destructive habit.
Good post.
@andrewf7754 I was born near Doncaster and have been living in Germany for almost 58 years, the environment and cities put the UK to shame. In a few years time, the eastern Europeans will visit the
UK and see how run down their countries were, before being in the EU.
Thanks Andrew 👍
@@johngodley256 Hello John, we have a common background. I was also born in Yorkshire (Sheffield) and started visiting Germany just under 57 years ago. I first went along the Helmstedt corridor and through Checkpoint Charlie to E-Berlin in 1970. The FT has regularly written articles backing up what you say; one of the earliest was in June 2014 with the heading: "UK poverty on par with former Eastern bloc."
Great insight. And services are the most mobile of all value-adding activities. So, UK is very exposed.
I've known Germany since 1967 when it was West Germany and the war was still a recent memory for a lot of Germans. Two years later I emigrated to Cologne as a guest worker and lived there for 12 years. Germany today may well be in recession, but the standard of living is way better than in Britain. In Germany the trains work and fares are much lower than in Britain. The German health care system does not have almost 8 million patients waiting for treatment as in the UK. Compare the now practically nonexistent NHS dentistry in the UK to the widely available dentist provision in Germany. Our cost of living in the UK is going through the roof. Not so in Germany.
But how does one even begin to re-educate ill-informed Britons with the truth? In Britain the lies we are fed daily by the right-wing media, including broadcasters such as GB News, are poisoning our ability for rational thinking. Our mindset today is not unlike that of the Germans in 1933 who watched the Nazi regime come to power and did not do anything to stop it. Even in 1945 many Germans refused to accept defeat, just as Brexiters in Britain today refuse to admit that Brexit has been a total failure. And I don't think 2024 is going to bring better news, either. In fact, we are soon to be subjected to fingerprint checks and facial recognition scans when we enter the EU for business or pleasure. Brexiters will doubtless use this as another weapon against the EU, yet the change is entirely of our own making when we chose to leave.
Sadly. It is far easier to bullshit stupid people than it is to educate them.
I don’t believe Britain is not in recession. I think the Government and the OBR are fiddling the figures. Every small business I know is struggling here.
I agree with you. I live in a Market town in Yorkshire, shops have closed, café owners saying they cannot afford the utilities. I am sure the country is in recession.
Never, Tory Ministers never lie to us and neither do the Tory press. Keep going with your European tour I think it could lead to something. Very effective.
@@susanmorgan3104 The same is true across the world. Yes there is a world outside of Yorkshire and even the UK. Look at what is happening in it. It's nothing to do with Brexit.
@@TheLRider And the EU which has even more politicians of all shades and colours than a little country like the UK, They never lie either. Come on.
You wouldn't believe you had shit ya pants untill 4 days after the event.
I have relatives in Germany, what I find is they are much better off than we are , heath system works well, no great delays in treatment. My cousin was diagnosed with prostate cancer and within
three weeks he had an operation and is now fine. You get the feeling that most of the places all seem prosperous well kept historical buildings everywhere nice shops, fantastic bakeries but getting less now as all their supermarkets make it hard for the independents to keep going. It is a country that seems to be moving forward, I just feel sad for the UK when I return. The people
that fooled the people to vote for Brexit need punishing.
l
English born, over 50 years of living in Germany and seeing the massive differences has convinced me never
to go and live in the UK again.
I found that Germany offered a much more level society than the UK, with little or no conspicuous poverty, and maybe fewer obscenely wealthy people. Germany tends to invest in its infrastructure for the good of the country and its population. In the UK, we squeeze the poor for the benefit of the rich.
LOL
Press release No. 190 of 16 May 2023
17.3 million people affected in Germany in 2022
14.7% of the population were at risk of poverty, 6.1% were affected by severe material and social deprivation, 9.7% were living in a household with very low work intensity
WIESBADEN - Just over 17.3 million people in Germany were affected by poverty or social exclusion in 2022. This equated to 20.9% of the population, the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) reports on the basis of first results of the survey on income and living conditions (EU-SILC). The values remained almost unchanged from the previous year (2021), when just under 17.3 million people, or 21.0% of the population, were affected by poverty or social exclusion.
LOL you don't see it in tourist towns or if you wear a pink scarf .
@@swallowdalert You are right of course. We all see things through our rose coloured spectacles (or scarf)😉
You can find poor people everywhere, and homeless. I don't think Brexit or no Brexit affects them really.
I will never understand how Britains thought that the corner shop was going to get a better deal than Amazon???
You don't need to be an economist to realise this.
As a Brit resident in Germany I can assure viewers that, for all its troubles, and there are indeed many, Germany is a veritable paradise in comparison with my homeland in its current miserable state.
Every country has troubles .I live in Berlin where the bus being 1 minute late is classed as such .Have dual nationality born in UK and having an amazing transport system , cleanliness + emergency services negate any other.. Happy New Year , oder sollte ich sagen eine gute Rutsche :-)
Indeed. I migrated to Germany 20 years ago from the UK and have no regrets.
I'm half German and have lived in Germany for 18 years. I visit friends in Germany and Austria every year. The sense of pride in your neighbourhood, towns and countryside is baked-in with these countries...no matter your background. Standards here are deteriorating fast due to waste, mismanagement and those in authority setting a poor example. The decline in tax revenue brought about by Brexit is only making the country even poorer.
The UK has high skilled and talented people, but let down by over paid, over rated self-serving politicians. You don't see homeless people sleeping in shop doorways in German towns and cities.
Fantasy rubbish,...tax revenues are pouring in....enough for yet more Tory TAX CUTS.
While I agree Germany is in a much better position than the UK, there are absolutely homeless people all over Germany.
Demoralisation is the real killer, not "laziness" as our governments would have people believe.
I take a walk around a local estate and think " for how long would I bother maintaining my front garden if the council (because they've been starved of funds) can't maintain the roads or clean the streets?
@@Anthonythumb This is true. Provision is locally managed so it depends on how much of a priority it is for the local government.
What I like about this pride, is that you see the town crest, German or state flag and EU flag side by side in the centre: we can have local pride and European pride together.
What was it like being in a real country with a real Government, it’s been so long I’ve forgotten
Unfortunately a lot of Germans aren't happy with their government due to its energy and migration policies but at least they're not Tories
I've lived in Europe for 20 years now and come back to see my family in the UK every year. Every visit the roads and infrastructure looks worse than the year before. More boarded up shops and shabby looking streets. A lot of the UK press stories on countries in Europe are outright lies, especially the " UK is doing so much better now we're out of the EU" all written by the Telegraph, Mail and Express - all ignoring the real hardship many UK families are facing caused by the total mismanagement of our economy by the worst government in living memory.
Well said. Totally agree. I left in 1974 and believe me it’s been going wrong for over fifty years. Briefly, things were better after joining the EU, but truth is people believe the crap parroted to them by the right wing newspapers and respective UK governments. Whether it’s right or left in government, both have been happy to use the EU as a scapegoat for their bad governance, and the public has been willing to lap it up. The EU is not perfect, but it’s a hell of a lot better than Tory liars.
I like that you choose this way of showing your countryman how the EU really looks like.... I love it.
Aachen looks beautiful. No boarded up shops, no betting shops, no charity shops, no chuggers, no vape shops and no graffiti or litter everywhere. It's probably typical of most German towns that I have been to. None of the visible signs of urban decay that we have become accustomed to.
I think you’re being a tad pedantic there. Most cities and towns everywhere have graffiti - I wouldn’t say there’s anything wrong with it actually as long as it’s not associated with crime or gangs. Vape shops, same thing. Betting shops, same as well. Bad personal choice to vape or bet but it isn’t a sign of “urban decay”. In fact, the rate of smoking in Germany is quite a bit higher than the Uk. It’s like 12% higher based on 2020 stats. Boarded up shops and litter, sure.
The whole of Europe were laughing at the silliness of little Britain , now they’ve just forgot about the Kip!
my god a high street with shops
I half live in Frankfurt and the other half in UK. Have been living like this for over 20 years so know Germany intimately. I have cancer and I’m having all my treatments here in Germany. 95% of German people are on state health scheme which functions really well. My treatment is fantastic as is dental treatment and seeing a GP. I laugh when I hear the liars in uk government spouting on about how bad it is in eu. Why do people believe it? I can only assume that the general population are either stupid or so blinded by all that jingoism we get in uk and that constant “bringbackery” on tv media and newspapers. Brexit is a catastrophic mistake and everyone knows it.
I hope your treatment is going well.
From a British born European living in the UK.
Good luck Charlie 😊
Thanks Michael. The average cost of living in Germany is 21% cheaper than the cost of living in the UK. The biggest differences are in the cost of rent (17.4% more expensive in the UK) and childcare (249% more expensive in the UK)
Council tax to is far to expensive in the uk
@@user-xl8on7sf8o 'too' expensive? For the average person perhaps. London has more Billionaires than most Capitals and they pay very little council tax considering their wealth.
@@user-xl8on7sf8oCouncil tax has had to be put up due to tory cuts to the grants councils used to receive.
Yes, housing costs and childcare are the essentials in life that can totally break people if absent or overpriced.
@@user-xl8on7sf8o you don’t have Council Tax in Germany. Taxes for local services are collected as part of your income tax. Income tax in Germany is collected by the regional tax office (Finanzamt), which will distribute what the collect.
I lived and worked in the UK for 8 years until Brexit drove me away and I returned home to Germany. Luckily being a teacher I could easily ind work here too and the biggest relief is that housing is actually affordable - unless your in the centre of major cities. I used to live in Oxford and even as a full time employee could never afford more that a room in a shared house. Here I pay just over 500 a month for an entire apartment to myself. I still miss the beauty of the UK but the government is a mess and living costs are out of control. Plus who would give up an EU passport? Those things are golden!
Parts of the UK are beautiful, true, especially the countryside. On the other hand try visiting Rochdale, Tilbury, Southend, Luton, Walsall
Jaywick and other Turdtowns too many to mention. Beautiful is not the adjective that springs to mind.
I live in Milan, Italy, but frequently travel back to Nottingham, UK. There’s no comparison. Milan is so much better. No boarded up shops anywhere. So much more choice in the supermarkets. Health system works perfectly with very short waiting times (I had a hip replacement on the Italian NHS in full Covid times just 2 months after going on the list), and the people look healthier (far less obesity) and are less morose. So much better in Italy, and I haven’t even mentioned food, wine, sun etc. The UK truly messed up with Brexit. Voted out of ignorance.
People happily believed lies from liars who have never been on 'their side' and now loot the country with impunity.
Look how nice and organised and clean Germany streets are and look at our streets, especially up north, with boarded-up shops, homelessness, drugs. UK seems an absolute dump compared to Germany. Plus the people on the street speak Englsih and seem much more educated than us lot. Where is Britain taking us for god's sake, down the extremely wrong path that's where! The poverty line!
@@foppo101not just the politicians, thank the right wing media (Sun/Express/Mail) and the BBC too for spreading the Conservative lies
But I couldn’t help noticing that we are still world leading in empty shops in the high street.
Come shopping in the UK if you love nail bars, bookies, Turkish barbers and greasy smelly cheap chicken shops!
Even the English countryside is awash with litter. We've become a national dustbin full of rubbish from the bottom to the top.
The difference is... even if that's the case, Germany and other EU econocmies can afford a bit of recession without going bankrupt.
I was in Berlin recently and was amazed at the complete lack of potholes.
We still have a lot, there is just too much money channeled to Berlin.
The rest of Germany has not the infrastructure it deserves.
As an Irishman living in the UK over 25yrs now one thing marks out life here and that is the undercurrent of anxiety. When I am in Ireland I feel quite relaxed and in good spirits. Things could be so much better in the UK but it's full of sheep. Hopefully this dreadful government will be gone soon and we can repair this broken country.
We can all but hope 🙏
Far too many people are the proverbial Boiled frog. They don't understand how they have become so poor over the last 13 years in particular. The Farages, Tices and Tories tell them its "The immigrants"
Sorry pal , but the UK is not repairable , that imbecile Johnson put the final nails in the coffin . Maybe 200 years from now things will begin to improve.
The people seems much happier in 🇩🇪 than in the UK.
I was born near Doncaster, the last time I visited I felt depressed and could not wait to get back to
Germany, where I have lived for almost 58 years. Everything here is better. Cities are clean and have
many well kept buildings from the middle ages. The seaside resorts especially them on the Baltic,
put English resorts to shame, not full with drop outs either.
looks a bit crap there, where are the boarded up shops, charity shops, litter, weeds, dirty pavements; they should pay more tax, then they could be like the UK 😆
Somehow we now fail at failing 😔
No sane person could possibly say that Brexit was a good idea. It wasn't. It was the biggest grift ever pulled off by some of worst people you could possibly imagine. And now, seven years on, most of the country has realized that there will never be any tangible benefits to being outside the EU and would like to rejoin. It's a pity it had to come this to bring them to their senses. Happy new year, Michael, and to all your viewers too.
Agree.
@@sc3pt1c4L Brexit was a compound word of Britain and exit. All anyone could vote for was to leave or remain, not some version of a unicorn infested future.
Leavers voted to leave the EU and Britain exited the EU almost four years ago, so their vote has been honoured. It's the lack of unicorns that's bugging them
Brexit as they imagined it was and is the undeliverable promised by the unprincipled (think Bozo, Farage et al) to the gullible or hard of thinking.
Brexit was a good idea. It showed the EU, Britain’s real colors . There were hints of course in the years leading up to the vote that the UK never took being in the EU as serious as other countries did . I can speculate that if you didn’t vote to leave sooner or later France & Deutschland would have had enough of your antics and kick you out . I can still see Nigel waving his little flag around the parliament while 26 others nations decided to not use flags anymore . It starts with something small like bendy bananas, it ends with te UK exposing itself as a fraud to the project never really wanting to be serious about it . Brexit was the best move the EU could ever play .
@@jcvastgoed1490The EU member treaties provide for this: Each country can withdraw of its own accord. But NO EU state can be thrown out by the others.
If that were possible, Poland and Hungary would have been kicked out long ago.
@@sc3pt1c4LThe UK no longer pays an EU membership fee. The payments are obligations that the UK entered into during its membership. In return, they have received a lot during membership.
The lack of empty retail units tells its own tale.
What tale does it tell?
@@sc3pt1c4Lthey are doing well didn't realise it needs explaining
I thought you might have more depth, for example comparative corporation tax and business rates, rent controls, proportion of the population on sickness benefits vs working, transport infrastructure, parking charges etc. Apologies for thinking you might have realised that the success of a high street is dependent on myriad factors and not just being in the EU.@@anthonypert574
Recently been to Berlin , Salzburg and Innsbruck and they were all thriving. The foods available were wide ranging, the streets were all clean, tourism was thriving, the locals were all friendly. There isn't a sense of foreboding and there's a sense of freedom and cosmopolitanism. The UK is like going back in time 60 years!
Germans know they have a future.
The EU has a future. Together we are a powerhouse
Yeah, but look how advanced our high streets are compared to Germany, for example, we are world leaders in boarded up shops!
That town is so clean 😮😮😮
You will find clean towns and cities around the world it's a sign of a cohesive community rather than an individualistic mindset. The UK population has worshipped America for too long and needs to stop copying them.
Very enjoyable video and I think I've spotted a Brexit benefit at last. We have far more litter in the streets and shopping centres than the EU
The British voted for Brexit, and the US voted for Trump. There is enough stupidity on both sides of the Atlantic 😢
And Trump might come back soon.
Michael, I live on that little island west of the UK. I think most of the peope here in Ireland, are delighted to be part of the EU !
From a purely superficial point of view I see how clean the streets are. It's the same here in France, very little in the way of litter! Our taxes may be a little higher but they go towards the street cleaning, verge trimming, tree cutting which keeps the roads clear and road signs visible. I am always shocked when coming to the UK at the level of litter in the streets and the overgrown roadside verges.
I’m shocked too… and I live in the U.K. 😮
We opted for "no such thing as society", y'see, Kathy!
This is such a great post which counters all the negative comments about Germany being on the brink of collapse. You are showing clearly how much propaganda there is to attempt to justify the disastrous brexit. People can see with their own eyes that the UK made a foolish mistake voting to leave the EU.
It’s a nice city have driven there whilst living in the Netherlands. Living outside UK you can see that England is decades behind Western European countries in terms public services, transport, healthcare etc but people in the island are told otherwise and ignorant to it.
Whatever is written in the Daily Mail or Express is the TRUTH in Tory UK. Sunak makes policy and speeches to cater to the Mail Express demographic.
It’s actually depressing returning to this knackered, run-down, downtrodden island these days. It feels like there’s now no escape and it’s a downward spiral, all thanks to the Tories who have got richer at our expense
A brilliant insight into the reality of Brexit. We cannot believe a single word that comes out of this Tory government and the Tory press.
Keep up the good work Michael, and telling the truth.
Agree, half the lies they tell you aren't true.
@@paulwilson7234 and the other half are lies also.
@@paulwilson7234 Thanks Paul after Michaels video I was really down in the dumps. Your comment made me smile.
You only have to look over the Micheal's shoulder at the street scene in Aachen - clean , tidy and bustling with life . Thats how poorly Germany is doing -- Not !!
I admire the germans, they f**ked up monumentally twice, took the lessons and have created a far better society
While Brexiteers bask in memories (not theirs of course!) from 80 years ago.
@bereal. I guess that's the difference between the two. One has learned lessons from it's past, turned around and become an economic powerhouse, while the other gloats about it's colonies, royalty, the empire, the past and gone glory, while it's citizens standards are going below countries it once ruled!
To be fair, we got help from UK after the 2nd moronic attempt…let’s say we used that generous chance given to not try a 3rd time
No boarded up shops, no piss and litter in the streets...
As a European, Brexit is still a mystery to me. I never expected the British to be so stupid.
That's unkind. 48% voted to stay.
Unfortunately the majority of remainers did not vote.
"Deep behind enemy lines" 🤣
Yeah, we had some spies talk nice to him to confuse the brits. Cunning plan, innit?
I migrated from the UK to Germany, and this is pretty much the same as I've experienced. We do have social issues; I work in social care and the system isn't perfect, but our living standards and the opportunities for my kids are far beyond anything that I would have had in the UK.
Wir jammern auf hohem Niveau, Korschtal !
@@johannagardaexactly. Und eine blaue Partei redet uns ein, dass wir kurz davor sind auf den Stand von Nord Korea abzusinken.
@@marcd689730% in Ostdeutschland gehen den Putin-getreuen Faschisten auf den Leim.
I live in the Netherlands and visit neighboring country (and place of birth) Germany several times a year. Both NL and DE are in recession but have a much better *base* compared to the UK. Germany is an industrial powerhouse, the Netherlands is the second largest agricultural exporter. NL and DE 'win' (though this is not a competition) on so many levels, compared to the UK. One example is infrastructure: drive through Germany or the Netherlands, and then drive through the UK, The state UK roads are in is eh.... let's say 'different'. (edit: typo)
The Netherlands produce the photo-lithographic machines ever chip manufacturer is using...just saying. I am envious on that-and I am German.
Good thing you also pointed out the *base* … that is so important
@@RealMashDon't be sad - e.g. the optics for these machines come from Zeiss exclusively. The European supply chain is much bigger than "only" Dutch components.
I am a Brit living in Germany and love the Netherlands. I was surprised at the results of the latest elections though. Any thoughts?
@@tapdancer421 Ouch, yes the elections. Not happy with the results. The only 'explanation' I have is that a lot of people are unhappy with how things are going right now. NL has a housing shortage and a lot of refugees. Many people think the one has to do with the other. I don't: housing shortage in NL is due to bad governing by coalitions primarily led by the right-wing VVD. We used to have a Ministry for Social Housing but the government got rid of that in 2010. It was reinstated only last year because the necessity was finally seen, though way too late. So: people are unhappy, blame immigrants/ refugees, blame Dutch-Moroccan criminal/ troublemaking youth (which is an issue but it's not like all Dutch-Moroccans are to blame, or that Islam is to blame) and voted Wilders.
Fortunately in NL, we have PR and not FPTP. So Wilders can't govern alone, a coalition will have to be formed, with parties that are less euro-sceptic and will want to uphold the constitution. So things like 'banning' Islam or leaving the EU will never happen. Nevertheless: I'm not really proud of the results and of the direction my country is taking right now. Hoping for the best! And that is: that people realize someone like Wilders can only point at (and exaggerate) the problems but never has solutions. Let him (politically) fall flat on his face. (edit: typo)
Nice to see the Germans not adopting the track suit culture. I also noticed no boarded up shops, junkies or obesity 👍🏼
You didn't see a gormless populace glued to their iphones either.
Half of the comments here sound like they’re from sheltered pensioners who aren’t happy with social change in the Uk. There’s a lot of poverty to complain about on the streets in the Uk, but “Tracksuit culture” isn’t something to complain about, nor is obesity or drug use - both of these two things need to be tackled rather than mocked.
@@LowPlainsDrifter60Oh yeah, such a big deal, people being glued to their phones 😮. When were you born? In the last epoch?
I notice no shops boarded up
Brexit is like having a shit on your living room carpet,then complaining about the look and smell of it.
That is so funny😂😂😂!
At least your shit has been delivered AND unpacked! Did it come with instructions? 🤣🤣😂💩
@@marklangley7758 Yes! It came with a small Union Jack flag for the summit and a dose of schadenfreude from Germany.
Brexit UK sniggering at the German recession is like a formula one racer in a broken car who has been lapped many times sniggering at the leader having had to slow down due to a gust of wind but still remaining firmly in the lead
The obvious reality is that the people of this UK are not part of a united but fragmented country due to incompetence corruption and betrayal of all the basic infrastructure for a civilised democracy The UK is not a democracy by any length of measure it’s an Exposed Criminal Mafia hiding in transparent Emperors Clothes The biggest insult to the majority of descent people is the Political System because the people supposed to be MPs representing their electorate are prevented from doing that job that Taxpayers pay them to do Allegedly It’s a totally corrupt biased flawed system quite deliberately kept in place for vested interests Not in the interests of the voters This Country is aTotal Con run by replicas of Fucking Useless Brainless Bojos That Starmer will replicate if elected his only priority is himself witness his behaviour in Parliament for a insight of who he represents ?
What a revealing video, no flyblown litter, no boarded-up shops, nobody begging or sleeping rough. Maybe show a fruit & veg shop next time?
England as gone to the dogs in the last 14 _15 years
Plus tories fetching all the foreigners over for hotel stays
Go to minute 05:30
The Benetton clothing shop is closed. And a Beggar sits in front of another shop.
Germany is doing fine, no problems here - I'm glad Sunak wants to tell people there is a recession here, otherwise I would never have known about it. My brother back in the UK tells a different story about brexit britain...
There is an official calculation method and according to this, Germany is in a slight recession. This will also be the case in 2024. We have a Herculean task on our hands: The cost of halting climate change as well as the restructuring of the energy sector, after the detachment from Russian oil and gas. But we can manage that too. We have raised 1.5 trillion euros for 16 million East Germans, we have raised many billions for 1 million Syrians and we are raising many billions of euros for Ukrainians. We can do this because we sell many products in the EU.
Duitse producten zijn heel goed , ik koop nooit Chineese rommel , je buurtje .@@ichbinbluna3504
Mine too.
Slight recession? US trade war against China and Europe spells trouble
Funny how many Germans/Europeans speak English quite well.
I wonder how many Brits would be able to conduct an interview in German.
My partner is English, I am from Germany. We live together since 20 years. He can say: „Guten Tag, auf Wiedersehen, bitte und danke“. We live in Spain, he can‘t speak Spanish either. He does not worry, because I speak 3 languages 😊😊😊😊😊
Language is the basis of communication. If you're interested in others you're interested in learning another language. That's the problem of the UK because they still have the feeling that everyone has to follow them but in a globalized and not colonial world it's different. Maybe one day they'll learn it but it's not for sure....
@PropagandasaurusRex. Friends told me that most Germans speak a good level of English. This video only confirmed that for me! Forget about Brits conducting an interview in German, in innumerable videos of Brits talking about a topic, it has stuck me how very few can articulate a few intelligent sentences in their own language, English!
PS: I can say the same about Dutch, like the Germans, who speak a very standard of English!
If may say so, I m neither English nor German , Brexit hasn’t made Britain great!
I know that sarcasm is the lowest point of wit. Why not it a chance!
Those Germans know what they are talking about. Also a lovely looking town 😊
So glad we left the UK to live in Spain 16 years ago, by the way we are immigrants in Spain, not ex-pats. We can get a doctors appointment usually the next day. No food shortages, only things that have suffered after brexit is British produce, which we can do without. But your see much more Irish produce.
Viva España
👍🇪🇦🇪🇺🇬🇧👍😊
My mother in-law now deceased was German . We have German relatives . Their standard of living and public services are far superior to this basket case of a country . My relatives are horrified at what the NHS has been reduced to under this government they read the horror stories and are incredulous.
By German standards there has been an economic decline in recent years that shows in areas such as education, reliability of transport, closure of hospitals and Fachkräftemangel (lack of qualified workers). By comparison to the UK however Germany is still miles ahead. Shops are full over here and there are no shortages.
As a German who lived in the UK for over 20 years and has been back in Germany for the past ten years I am very familiar with both worlds. The gap between rich and poor is much wider in the UK and while you do see beggars in big cities in Germany its nowhere near as widespread. Rents can also be very high in big cities like Cologne, Berlin or Munich. However the crucial difference is that the German housing market protects the rights of tenants much more through legislation and avoidance of precarious rental agreements than in UK. The shop theft epidemic that has hit the Uk in recent months is also nowhere to be seen over here. All in all, the it’s a clear indication of the level of desperation that many Brits have to face due to years of austerity, stagnant wages, a lack of union power and a corrupt media that has brainwashed people into voting Tory.
Yea, the British Problem certainly didn't start with Brexit, it started decades before.
"a lack of union power and a corrupt media that has brainwashed people into voting Tory." absolutely Sylvia, I have never ever seen any democratic country has such a kind of toxic Media, and not only Tabloid but MSM. SAD, VERY SAD!!!!!!!!!!!!
@@johannagarda America, if you can call it a democracy, does have similar toxic media to the UK but then they are all owned by the same toxic individuals.
Spot on regarding the rental market. 👍
@@LowPlainsDrifter60 Yes, you're right! Murdoch and his Fox... But the other media have more or less the chance to call them out. But in England, non exists or very weak
Clean streets, no mentally ill people wandering around without support or meds. No homeless people cowering in shop doorways. Lovely Christmas lights. People not staring dispondently at the floor. Lovely. Thank you, Michael ❤
There’s a lot of comments that follow a similar theme to yours. Things about homeless people and mentally ill people that don’t actually seem all that compassionate. It is a disgrace that the support systems for these people have been run down by lack of funding but it isn’t something to be pointed out as a stark comparison - people need help everywhere and we need to focus on getting the help to those people above moaning about the state of the streets.
@@ecaeas4439 I beg to differ. It might seem to you that it doesn't matter what the state of the streets are but the state of the streets it just a snapshot of how our communities and towns are in a state of decline. I mentioned the streets because of the stark contrast between the streets that Michael had filmed and my town's streets, totally different. Very depressing. This example is just a tiny example of the decline in the UK, overall.
What a sad state of affairs when politicians in the UK have to look somewhere else to find worse conditions than in their own country and to hope for the EU to collaps. How low can you sink.
The classical last ditch effort of propaganda. Same thing Russia is doing (people in Europe allegedly freezing to death, eating their pets etc.)
@@sigmagic2874 I am nearly freezing to death at work because someone always leaves the door open but I would never eat my pet if I still had one.
Wow remember when the shops were not boarded up .
And its so clean . They must have a working government . Rember a government that governed . Happy New year everyone ..lets work together to make things better .
".. it is up to the English people..."
Nail on the head. LOL.
Hi Michael, looks like a good trip! Where were all the pop up tents, the graffiti, over flowing bins, shuttered shops, stinking chicken takeaways, charity shops and vape outlets? 😂 Thanks for your vids over the last 12 months and Happy New Year to you.
The difference in (healthy looks) of the German public in comparison with an average city in the UK is staggering.......
Nobody does Christmas markets like the Germans. Aarchen is lovely.
Wow, it's great to see a high street where the shops are not all boarded up.
It's good to see that Germany is getting through difficult times, not a single boarded up shop, beggars apparently allowed but I saw only one, and people being incredibly polite about Britain´s idiotic insularity. A really enjoyable walk round, thank you.
I can imagine people feeling pretty tense in England just now, I think we are doing better in rural Spain.
Two young guys were made homeless recently when an informal campsite was raided by the police.
They bought a donkey which was due for the chop, and hit the road. They wound up on my mountain, and made camp nearby, locals helped them out with money and warm clothes, they look after a couple of stray dogs and a feral cat has moved into their three man tent.
My neighbour is looking after the donkey, which is a real sweetie, and after we´ve watered the trees on Monday morning we are all meeting at my place for a jam.
Violin, banjo, ukulele, cajon, sax, and we'll also drink a toast or two, to two wise men and a donkey, and 2024. Greetings from Lanjarón.
Watching your film of you strolling around the shopping centres both interior and exterior, the first thing I noticed was how well stocked they all are. Also, hardly any boarded up premises and very little signs of littering. When I visit the shopping centres of Redcar and Middlesbrough that are local to me all I see is boarded up shop fronts (rows and rows), charity shops, and fast food outlets. They are in a sorry state. Germany looks like it's far better off than us.
Well stocked ? Filled to the brim you mean. The Christmas / New Year period is high season for our shops, not only in Germany but all over (most of) Europe. In Belgium followed by the "Solden", a fixed period meant to liquidate old stock.
If it was in the UK, we could've seen tons of garbage, boarded up shops, graffiti and homelessness! It's better if we don't speak about the state of transport and health! A train card can let you travel the length and breadth of Germany for 3500 pounds per annum, while a London card only, will set you back by 4000! One can have same or next day GP appointment vs the broken healthcare and public transport on the island!
This is a strange disease that only Breixteers carry and is contagious to other Brexiteers.😃 And the symptoms are comparing their poverty to a better-off country's economy by fabricating lies and BS, that everyone is doing worse.
You are doing a fab job though, Michael.
Germany will always do better, technology, excellent education, and health system, in contrast, British towns look like totally washed out of quality shops, clean streets and well-dressed people...
To add wages in Germany, France and in particular Switzerland are higher, and working conditions are much better.
Most British wealth offshore in tax havens like Cayman Islands and Jersey.
Having lived well in the UK for over 35 years i feel now happier in Germany. My husband is English, so we share our time in both countries. Life feels more optimistic in Germany, whereas returning to Britain after some time here makes us always feel low. Feel sorry for young people in the UK, for the lack of opportunities to study and work abroad. I do hope things will change again with a closer relationship to Europe. However, I am sometimes shocked to see how people still do not realise the Brexit lies they have been told. Thanks for all you do to change people's views
Thanks for this great insight - keep up the good work. Germans certainly seem quite happy walking among nice shops, clean streets etc. I dont know how the brexiteer politicians still have the audacity to continue supporting the stupidity of Brexit .. Have just finished James O'Brien's book (How they broke Britain) - excellent read and highly recommended to those seeking the truth about this disastrous government and current state of the country.
Michael great video
This just shows how short sighted our government is. Of course Germany is better because it's part of the largest trading block in the world. And we are in the puniverse. Keep up the good work!
Thanks RFO 😊
No comparison whatever between commercial Aachen and Belfast where i live. Every 4th shop is empty here in the shopping centres. Given the Germans huge dependance on cheap Russian energy two years ago, they seem to be doing a remarkable job at keeping the economy moving.
I'd have to say the Germans I've met have impressed me as being a well educated and sensible people and the ones you spoke to bore this out. Very careful to stay out of what was the British decision and not at all taking the piss out of our stupidity and subsequent economic decline, which would be easy.
I don't think a man who has overseen stagnation of the British economy and who has done nothing to alleviate the appalling cost of living crisis in the UK, is in a position to snigger at Germany. I note there are no boarded up shops in Germany.
It would be interesting to pick a similar size town in the UK and do a tour.
Coming up 😊
The EU looks forward, England continually looks backward ('66 World Cup, anyone?)
I guess nothing's changed since King Canute tried to hold back the tide...
Rob, that's england only.......
@@georgekelly6675 that's true, I shall update my post. Thanks 😀
King Canute was a Danish immigrant.
@@johngodley256 off to Rwanda with him.
Michael, I was in hospital in Aachen 50 years ago after a car crash. They looked after me wonderfully well. I now live over the border in Arnhem, and am a Dutch citizen. Nederland and Germany look so good compared to the UK. The whole look and feel of the places, especially the people. In this video the people look well turned out; in the UK they just look poor....
Michael, you were very brave to go through enemy lines, it's uncanny however that the enemy speaks such good English and is so civilised, oh well brexit is brexit as they say
The Brexiteers will add him to The List, for going to an enemy state
Its clearly espionage
Yes, I also noticed that there were no boarded-up shops, unlike my last visit to Torquay where half the town seemed to be crumbling. So sad. (Though British, I live in Australia and couldn't believe that Brexit happened.)
It would be interesting to see how the rest of the EU is faring, so please visit and have a look for those of us who can't.
I don't see boarded up shops where I live in southern France and was in Barcelona a few weeks ago and it was heaving and vibrant.I've come back t visit family in the UK and it feels dire, grey and miserable with shops closing down everywhere.The UK is heading for disaster under our current economic model.
I was in the Netherlands-they are even cleaner than Germany. Switzerland as well.
Off topic, but I was struck, as you wandered around, the almost total lack of any litter.
I noticed the same, during a recent trip to Spain. In one week, I only saw two pieces of litter either in the streets, or on public transport. Looking around my city, we're almost wading through the stuff, wherever we go.
These european cities are so lovely, a total contrast to the smelly litter filled UK cespits. The UK is a mess.
It must be really bad in Germany
Everyone is walking, they can't even afford petrol in their cars anymore
And some of the coble stones aren't laying straight.
But please British people we will survive in the EU, do us a favour and don't return.
And did you notice the shop windows were so thin you could see right through them? Poor Germany!
And surely, it is clean because shop assistants have no customers, nothing to do, and try to cure their sadness with therapeutic cleaning. @@dwdei8815
Love Satire 😂
This is an excellent follow up to your last videos. The German downfall is imminent: over the course of 2023, Germany improved it's global GDP position from rank four to rank three, the stock market rose about 20%+. I do see our present challenges but do not feel any "recession-mood". Over the same period of time, the UK lost one place in the ranking to India and the stock market rose about just three percent. There is alot more to analyze, but the real threats for Germany and the EU lie in right wing charlatans, who adress the same kind of under educated people like the peers in your country.
Actually, I don’t get how we ever could surpass Japan… something about the different exchange rates to dollar?
@@sigmagic2874 Germany has overtaken Japan as the world's third largest economy. The reason for this is, among other things, the fall in the exchange rate of the Japanese yen against the euro and dollar.
The yen is falling because the Japanese central bank - unlike the Fed and the ECB - is keeping interest rates low.
@@sigmagic2874 yeah, that's the major factor caused be years' long stagnation and a overall negative outlook, espacially by decrease of population combined with a lack of migration policy.
Spot on 100%
@@sigmagic2874 I was based in Japan for 10 years, still have some biz there. The problem is the struggle of the younger generation with some traditional values, so besides demographic issues they face brain drain too, but it’s a homemade problem they could actually solve. So, as many times in the past, I have confidence Japan finds a solution
I regularly visit Belgium for Business. My colleagues are dumbstruck in how bad the UK has sunk.
I also just missed out on a business opportunity because I’m in the UK.
It’s all just so depressingly stupid
Come over to Switzerland..my poor daughter had to wait a whole 5 minutes to be seen by a GP yesterday during the holiday period.
My mother had an ultrasound scan ordered here in France as a non urgent procedure. It was done the following day.
They really do Christmas so beautifully in Germany ❤
UK calling Germany 'disaster' is like a pot calling a kettle black. Yes, Germany is far from perfect nor its economic prospect is rosy (but then, frankly name any country whose prospect seems rosy currently). Steady, calm and the middle of the way mentality (post the destruction of WW2, the overwhelming desire among German population has been stability and calm) is catching up with them in this paradigm shifting time, and should Germany fail to act quickly to adapt, it will lose its status as the power house. But right up until the pandemic, Germany had some of its best years in terms of economy, and its wealth was generated by and distributed to relatively evenly through various industries, regions and population. The level of social trust is still relatively high, and the people still demand and are willing to provide high standard.
UK is in many ways much worse position. The country, as the victor of WW2, didn't go through the radical restructuring as Germany did. The class mentality and archaic legal and political system didn't change much. Brexit was shocking in itself, but the bigger shock was the underbelly the whole saga revealed - the politics, media, education (3 most important element in fucntioning democracy) all failed to function as balancer and objective informer of the public. As a bit of anglophile myself, it's been painful to watch the show, but I quickly realised the problem is really rooted much deeper than just Brexit/pandemic/war. UK really does need a deep soul searching before any 'look over there' distraction tactic, 'Great opportunity awaits!' fever dream, or 'we're brits' type of self righteousness.
A lot of British people believe that the 'Great' in Great Britain means that we have somehow achieved greatness because of our empire and colonialism. All it means is : England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland combined? Its confusing how many names we have and why people interchange them. Britain, United Kingdom, Great Britain and to many England covers everything
We need some grown up politicians and honest debate
Hear, hear!
@@bearsbreecheshello Jennifer what I was taught was that the Roman immigrants came to England from France and named it after Brittany in France , because it was much Larger than Brittany they added the equivalent word for ‘ Greater “ hence Great Britain , if you’re capable of thinking about it then it’s so easy to see ,
@@bearsbreechesBritain or Great Britain is a geographical term for the island that is comprised of England, Wales and Scotland. As another commentator says, the ‘Great’ is to differentiate it from Bretagne (Brittany) in France. The United Kingdom is the combined nations of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
This is where Tori politics have degraded to: Cheap laughter about their neighboards instead of improving realationships.
From Germany happy New Year UK
Vote out the Tories.
Similar in Austria where a friend of mine lives. Can see his doctor any day of the week, pays 350 Euros a month for a decent studio flat that includes heating, electricity, hot water and no council tax. 30 Euros a month for a Travel card, lots of trains, trams and busses within his "15 minute city" . Lives on minimum wage but has money left over for 6 weeks holidays a year, eats out once a week etc and can even afford clothing etc. No sense of eternal doom there either. The problem with brexiteers is that they now believe that we need even more austerity and a more right wing government to deliver the perfect brexit, as currently they seem to believe that we are suffering from too much socialism.
Not one boarded up, empty shop, unlike here in the UK. Why is that?
go on take a wild guess!
Go to minute 05:30
The Benetton clothing shop is closed.
What you can see here in Aachen that the excuse used in the UK, that town centres are dead because of online shopping, is just nonsense. What good shopping areas can offer is something far beyond the activity of just buying stuff. What it really is all about is a " day on the town ". Nice and clean pedestrian streets, pretty decoration in the holiday season. Nice bakeries to get a snack. Plus all the achitercure, squares, statues and all that a good old town can offer. Its even enjoyable if you dont buy anything, but just to stroll around and soak up the atmosphere. In a lot of UK towns unfortunately soaking up the atmosphere is one of the last things you would want to do.
Doesn't look very busy to me. I was going to comment how bad the footfall was there. Person can't get access to medical specialists for months, so no different from anywhere else Inc UK. Remember that the Germans economy has got net zero to deal with soon ie change their existing car production to EVs that no one currently wants, plus major increases in energy costs that will cause big problems in the future to their manufacturing
Live in Munich (From Edinburgh), travel back now and again. There's not a time I return to the UK where I feel I'm having to pay more for the basics compared to Munich (easily one of the most expensive cities in Germany). £50-60 for a shopping basket for basics over the weekend?! Here I fill up my trolly in Aldi for the week for the whole family for less than €100, Aachen is a lovely place to spend time, the architecture is as colourful as the people, hardly a whisper of the hate and division you notice in the UK.
Aachen is twinned with ..Halifax.
...stop sniggering at the back.
It was only the English who wanted to leave the EU, not the Scots, not the Irish, not the Welsh and not the other Europeans. It was the "old" English people who wanted out, not the young ones. The old English people went to the polls in 2016 and voted for Brexit and the young people preferred to go to the rock concert in Glastonbury during this time.
Wales voted FOR brexit...despite getting the highest levels of assistance from EU via the regional development grants.
…which only strengthens the argument that ‘young people’ in the UK are not taught history or how to think: just what to think. ‘Old people’ have experience and are related more closely to those that ‘lived’ the 20th century and might just possibly be a tad wiser, a tad more hesitant about a federal European superstate. Until ‘immigration’ the UK was jam-packed with Saxons, Jutes, Angles etc. We are ethnically European: we just believe that our culture and constitution ought to be left to serve us as it has for the last 1000 years. Just saying. France is already on its fifth republic since Louis XVI lost his head. We just like continuity rather than all the fruits a Cromwellian ‘interregnum’ provides. We did that 150 years before the French. So, we’ll keep it like this and keep on buggering on as we’ve always done. That’s the British way.
Young people have always had a utopian view of the world, which isn't a bad thing, but as they get older reality bites and attitudes change.
I couldn't see any homeless people in this video, or any boarded-up town centre premises. The Germans are clearly on the wrong track.
Thank you for this, Michael. I also enjoyed the music.
Think it depends where you go, in Berlin around railway & tube stations you are likely to see homeless people. Aachen is a smaller city of 250,000.
Of course. But in the UK, you will see homelessness, dirt and misery nearly everywhere, even in "affluent" towns of 250 000 inhabitants. @@bbell1549
At 01:17, you could have also said that you are very close to the border with the Netherlands. In the outskirts of Aachen, there is the tripoint where Belgium, Netherlands and Germany meet. A well informed Dutch chap once told me that the tripoint is the highest point in the Netherlands. Three languages (French, German, Dutch/ Flemish) all converge in this region. Also, the cathedral in Aachen contains the tomb of King Charlemagne, the 12th century unifier of Europe. As far as the English are concerned, you are right at the heart of enemy territory !