More Brits retiring abroad?

The Telegraph is reporting on a new survey which predicts 1.8 million Britons retiring abroad by 2025 and 3.3 million by 2050. Apart from the obvious risk of trying to predict so far in the future (especially as no-one really has any accurate figures for population flows for last year), the article makes interesting reading. The social change over the last three decades has created a massive shift in behaviour; 30 years ago someone retiring abroad was an ‘exotic rarity’. Now it seems like spending the golden years somewhere other than home is fast becoming a mainstream aspiration for the average middle-aged couple.

It also appears that sunshine can only do so much, “However, beneath the glitz lurked a less happy picture. Three quarters of those surveyed admitted to feeling homesick some or all the time, missing friends, the British culture and sense of humour.” The big question that doesn’t seem to have been asked is whether those people would found something to complain about if they had stayed at home (a possibility given that complaining about the weather is a national sport in the UK…).