Foreign Ownership of UK assets.

woof woof said:
but certainly in industry we've seen factories and businesses closing here rather than in the foreign owners home country for political reasons.
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Or as I pointed out earlier, it's cheaper in other countries and with UK costs they can't compete with their competitors who have lower costs due to being in other countries or if in the UK have lower costs. Sometimes it's more economical to just shut up shop and move out.
Around 6 or 7 years ago, Ford in America closed down factories and reduced their manual workforce by 65%, with the Union they had to negotiate less benefits for the workforce because Ford were losing $2000 on every car sold compared to the likes of Honda, Toyota and BMW, because those manufacturers although also in America weren't paying their employees health benefits etc. Ford had to open plants in South America and Mexico, but since the closures, Ford have been able to open up factories in America again.
In Ford of Britain, we have two wage structures and pension schemes. I'm old school, having been with the company almost 36yrs, but anyone who joined the company within the last few years will be on 10% less and also in not quite so good company pension scheme. Perhaps in the future with the lower costs beginning to outweigh the higher costs Ford will be able to bring car production back to the UK instead of mainly just engines.
 
Estate agent windows are a bit like boxing day sales. All the old stock that nobody really wants yet some how people buy it.

I cant see anything I like. And when you look at actual sales and mortgage approvals then the picture is not great.
 
boyfalldown said:
But how many buyers/renters though. Shop windows being full doesn't mean enough to meet demand
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If demand out stripped supply, windows would be empty. My mate is in the process of buying, he has had loads of choice.
 
nilagin said:
If demand out stripped supply, windows would be empty. My mate is in the process of buying, he has had loads of choice.
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Really. In what world would windows be empty. As JP says

dejongj said:
Estate agent windows are a bit like boxing day sales. All the old stock that nobody really wants yet some how people buy it.

I cant see anything I like. And when you look at actual sales and mortgage approvals then the picture is not great.
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I have no idea where your mate is, but I know round here unless you have a lead before a property goes on the market you've almost no chance. 4 years its taken my (not particularly fussy) mate to find a new house. He finally completed a week ago
 
nilagin said:
If demand out stripped supply, windows would be empty.
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Fallacy. Market churn means there will always be something for sale at any given moment, regardless of supply/demand dynamics.

nilagin said:
My mate is in the process of buying, he has had loads of choice.
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Again, you are confusing what supply and demand mean in economic terms. Just because there are, say 8 houses available for sale, doesn't tell you anything about demand. How many potential buyers were there? 1? 8? 64?
 
Going back to the original question.

The assumption from the OP is that because a person is a foreign national any money they make in the UK will leave the country.

Just because something is owned by a UK national doesn't mean the money will stay in the UK either.
 
boyfalldown said:
I have no idea where your mate is, but I know round here unless you have a lead before a property goes on the market you've almost no chance. 4 years its taken my (not particularly fussy) mate to find a new house. He finally completed a week ago
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Exactly. Rule of thumb is that if it makes it into the window then it's either sold or unsellable. Most of the property round here is sold before it hits Zoopla.
 
Must have weird thumbs where you live.

Might come as surprise to you guys down south, but the rest of the country, house sales do not work the same way. Estate agents are still the place a lot of us go to find our houses
 
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munch said:
Must have weird thumbs where you live.

Might come as surprise to you guys down south, but the rest of the country house sales do not work the same way. Estate agents are still the place a lot of us go to find our houses
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Surely only the Metropolitan and Outer Metropolitan areas matter ;) :p
 
Llamaman said:
Yes, it's where our artisan cheeses and overpriced organic veg boxes come from. I hear it's lovely if you can survive being further than 2 minutes from a hip pop-up restaurant or a cocktail bar. ;)
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I'm sure its wonderful, but I'm not sure I can survive being more then 5 minutes away from my nearest cup of Kopi Luwak ;)
 
I remember the look on the bar staff's faces when I was in a pub in Leicester and asked for a babyccino for my daughter... priceless.
 
Llamaman said:
I remember the look on the bar staff's faces when I was in a pub in Leicester and asked for a babyccino for my daughter... priceless.
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Probably the exact same look that I am wearing now,
although at a guess I'd say caffeine free Cappuccino ?
 
Cobra said:
Probably the exact same look that I am wearing now,
although at a guess I'd say caffeine free Cappuccino ?
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It's just a small cup (espresso size usually) of warm milk with some milk froth on top. And maybe a sprinkle of chocolate to aid with obtaining an amusing moustache. Some places go very avant garde and make a small hot chocolate.
 
Oh, how the other half live.
 
Llamaman said:
It's just a small cup (espresso size usually) of warm milk with some milk froth on top. And maybe a sprinkle of chocolate to aid with obtaining an amusing moustache. Some places go very avant garde and make a small hot chocolate.
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Thanks. I've always wondered what one was but never been interested enough to ask. Or Google it. So it's milk. Awesome.
 
Llamaman said:
It's just a small cup (espresso size usually) of warm milk with some milk froth on top. And maybe a sprinkle of chocolate to aid with obtaining an amusing moustache. Some places go very avant garde and make a small hot chocolate.
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I still get weird looks when I ask for a white filter coffee!
How times have changed Eh?
:D
 
Llamaman said:
I remember the look on the bar staff's faces when I was in a pub in Leicester and asked for a babyccino for my daughter... priceless.
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You were in Leicester???? You're brave. I heard they still had bears up there. Painted their faces blue and spoke in strange tongues :D:D:D:D:D
 
boyfalldown said:
You were in Leicester???? You're brave. I heard they still had bears up there. Painted their faces blue and spoke in strange tongues :D:D:D:D:D
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I grew up in Leicestershire, so knew how to handle myself around the bears. Luckily City's form had turned for the better by then so they were in ebullient mood.
You're right about the strange tongue though - I remember getting to university and having to explain to non-Midlanders what a jitty or a cob was.
 
Cobra said:
Nope & Nope, I don't mind a cup-ochinio now and again. if only for the chocolate sprinkles :D
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I suppose one should be thankful that they don't use squirty cream from a can and stick a flake in it. Savages. :pompous:
 
Cobra said:
I still get weird looks when I ask for a white filter coffee!
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Cobra lets be honest you get weird looks fullstop.

Can we say flat white or black americano?
 
boyfalldown said:
Gosh - you sound like a Highgate Mum ;))
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Ah, North London. Even I'm not that , well, North London.

Took the children to a puppet theatre (yes, I know I'm loading the gun here) north of the river and were sat behind a family where one of the children was named Cornelius. I barely managed to stifle a snigger.
 
I have one of my own to add: Was North Of The River and there was a family looking at the ducks. Little boy asks his mother "did we bring any ciabatta?"
 
munch said:
I



I think it's a southern "in" joke. If you don't get, you don't get IT.
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Its a definite p*** take of a certain sort of mother you get in some parts of London. Worryingly for all the joking it ain't far from the truth. As I said above its not very far from things I hear every day dropping my daughter off at school. The big upset at the moment is the artisan baker shop is being replaced by an interior designers. First world problems
 
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You uncivilised lot. But hey we do eat bacon butties as well. Some granary toasted bread, real butter, some lettuce, a bit of guacamole and some nice thin streaky bacon crisped up. Yum.

Ps. I prefer a dopio with a flaming sambuca on the side. Even better when they leave the bottle :)
 
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