Expats views on Brits

I am ONLY posting this for discussion and to hear back from British people that I "know" - I make no inferences in any way - I just thought with the preponderance of British subjects here, you all might find it interesting - from an expat newsletter I get.  Interested in commentary from those with "boots on the ground" so to speak.

The Telegraph- More than half (57%) of the expats questioned said they found British people fitted their international stereotype to some extent – with 41% of them saying a tendency to drink tea rang true.

While expats appreciated British manners and the ability to queue, almost half (42%) said the excessive drinking culture was their least favourite trait in people and 31% regarded British sarcasm as unpopular.

The study, conducted by a visa application help website, polled 1,402 expats living in Britain who had originated from various parts of the world, as part of research into opinions on the British way of life.

The expats were asked if they liked living in Britain and 68% said they did, but almost a third (32%) said they did not.

The most common reason for those who disliked living in Britain was the weather, with 38% of expats agreeing on that.

A total of 28% said that they did not like British culture, and a further 22% said they did not like British cuisine.

Expats were asked for their opinions on the British populace, and the majority (77%) said that generally speaking they did like British people.

The remaining 23% said ''No, not really''.

When asked what their favourite British traits were, the expats' top answer was good manners at 49%, while 40% said that the ability to queue was a favourite aspect for them.

Some 32% approved of British reserve, saying they liked the restrained approach to emotion and 28% felt the majority of Britons were friendly.

When asked what their least favourite traits about British people in general were, the number one response was the excessive drinking culture, with 42% agreeing.

British sarcasm accounted for 31% of the responses, with the typically British humour regarded by some as an unpopular trait, and 19% of expats also cited British reserve as actually being a negative rather than a positive.

When asked if upon moving to Britain, British people met their expectations, 54% of the expats said they did.

The remaining 46% said ''No, not really''.

When asked whether or not this was a good thing, 61% said British people were better than expected, but 39% claimed that their opinion of British people had fallen since living here.

Liam Clifford, from GlobalVisas.com, the website that conducted the research, said: ''Moving to a new country poses many challenges.

''You might think you know all about a place from holidays and previous trips there, but actually living in a country puts an entirely different perspective on it.

''The majority of nationalities have stereotypes fitted around them and Brits don't escape this.

''With our imperialist past, Brits have influenced many countries worldwide, which means our stereotypes are, if anything, more entrenched than those of other countries.

''People probably come here with a stereotype-based preconception of what to expect.

''It's good to see from our survey though that, in the majority of cases, this reputation is actually enhanced upon living here.''