I mean both carry and own Goldie. I can only speak for Germans here but the majority I know have never been to America. Some other countries such as Turkey have a reciprocal agreement with Germany whereby an ID card is enough. So I would judge that the majority of Germans would only order a passport if going outside of the EU. (which would be a rarity). The passport is more expensive, and takes longer to arrive - whereas every German has to have an ID card by law. Bringing in such a condition for travel to the UK. would put off a lot of people - particularly if only a short journey was planned.
Off Topic The Politics Thread
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If only we had a proper conservative government rather than the current Conservative Party in government.
I’d very much vote for a party that would deliver a society that offered the same chances to everyone regardless of background, selecting based on ability and not post code.
I’d vote for a party that would rebuild the criminal justice system, from putting rozzers properly back on the streets and applying punishments befitting the severity of the crime (yes, and rehabilitation where that’s feasible).
I’d vote for a party that would give us back proper GP surgeries where you can book an appointment for two months time instead of ringing up at 8AM, sitting in a queuing system in the hope of booking an appointment for Thursday week, failing miserably, then finding out you can’t see your quack on a Wednesday either because that’s ‘non-English speaking patients day’ only (just happened to my 90-year old widowed aunt in Norfolk).
I’d vote for a party that invested properly in frontline healthcare staff, facilities and equipment and not backroom staff, administrators and target monitors.
I’d vote for a party that was sympathetic to immigrants, but only those that come properly through the front door, are genuinely refugees or offer a skill needed in these shores or come with monies to sustain themselves. I’d vote for a party that runs proper checks to ensure we’re not letting dangerous undesirables through our doors.
I’d vote for a party that promoted a greater sense of Britishness. I’d be happy for this to be British with a modern twist. No sane person would have an issue embracing those aspects of immigrant cultures that have enriched our own. Let’s celebrate a new Britishness and reject all that sours this new identity.
I’d vote for a party that believed in small government, lower taxation and less bureaucracy. Let’s have better visibility in terms of where our taxes go. For instance, why have your local council charge you council tax when a material element goes to another council elsewhere. If you’re going to do that, do it through other means such as tax on incomes.
I’d vote for a party that isn’t Namby or Labour too, if that helps clarify things.
I travel all the time to the EU and have had to show my passport every time. I can’t believe that anyone can just walk in.
Ellers, trust me on this one. As I said to Turkish, members of EU states can at present travel into the U.K. and just show their ID card.
We in the U.K. don’t have ID cards so haven’t been able to use this facility.
The Germany you speak of sounds very insular. Huge numbers of Brits travel outside the EU. North Africa, US, Israel, Caribbean, Canada, Far East particularly Thailand, Australia, NZ. Etc
It's not a question of just walking in Ellers. The British do not carry ID cards and so need a passport for such a journey.
I can speak first hand about the hamlet where I live Goldie - there are 50 of us and I know that 2 have been to the USA over the last 10 years and 2 more are regular travellers to India. We all know each other and so every movement is known
The living standard is relatively high and so this is not for want of money. But this still makes up less than 10%. My experience of other Germans is that some Germans travel a lot, but the majority have never left the EU (including Turkey here). For you travelling to the EU. means a major expedition ie. over water, in the sky, or through the tunnel - and so you may as well go the full hog and go further. Here it is different - Europe has everything and it is easily reachable. I hop on the train in Cologne and hop out in Paris without any planning whatsoever. What would I do in the USA. no culture, no good food, no history and the scenary I can just as easily get in Austria or Norway. Also environmental consciousness may be more pronounced here and someone who ++++s up the atmosphere by flying to Thailand may not admit to it !
I can speak first hand about the hamlet where I live Goldie - there are 50 of us and I know that 2 have been to the USA over the last 10 years and 2 more are regular travellers to India. We all know each other and so every movement is known
Yes, I can see that for Germans they are surrounded by beautiful, historically interesting countries that are easily accessible without flight, boat or tunnel. In some ways, you have just made the case for Brexit on freedom of movement. We have to take one of those three and show a passport, so why not fly to a resort in Egypt? The Brits have no particular reason to love freedom of movement so it's no real loss to most of them, and control over entrants is seen to be a gain
I’m quite fond of the ability to work and study abroad so simply.
You just apply for a visa to study or work as you do in the US. Not a big deal
I’m quite fond of not requiring a visa and any hindrance to getting a job or Erasmus course that may create.
Well, make the most of the time left. You've got 3 months. After that, perhaps you can crowdfund your visa application effort
My point was it was incredibly insular and a bit selfish of you perhaps to say we have no reason to desire freedom of movement.
Nope you’re correct. Chalet cleaning for rich folk can truly be empowering.
And my point is you're being a bit of a snowflake if you want to work in, say, France and can't be bothered to fill in an application form. If you holiday there, you don't even need that