EDITORIAL

By Jason Moore WE are exceptionally lucky to live on this island but I think there is a danger that some people who move here think that it is a sort of Utopia. Like all places around the world Majorca has its faults, from the cost of living to crime. During the 25 years I have lived on Majorca I have seen a large number of expatriate Britons come and go. While I was school it became a sort of joke that a British family would move here, buy a business and then sell up six months later. The story was repeated almost every year and in some cases it was the same businesses which were being bought and sold. As we all know, one thing is being on holiday in a place while the other is actually living there. I really enjoy returning to England on holiday but I am also aware that 60 percent of the population of the UK would like to emigrate. Moving overseas is a big decision; there are plenty of challenges, not least the language and the different way of life with rules and regulations. I do believe the authorities could do more to help people who are planning to move away from their native country. Rather cruelly, in the case of pensioners, the British government refuses to provide any sort of additional payments for OAPs who move abroad other than their state pension and financially speaking it is far better for them to remain in Britain. Then there is the issue of the language. In the case of Spain, most Spaniards only speak a little English or German and if you are dealing with officialdom it is Spanish or Catalan and that is it. I can understand why Majorca will always be attractive, because you can safely say that most Britons have holidayed here at some point. But don't forget there are challenges, the weather is not always like a picture postcard, the days of cheap Sangria are gone and overall living is expensive. But still we are lucky to live here, but Utopia was just a dream.