A quiet exodus is underway. Western expatriates, many of whom once embraced Russia’s promise of a new conservative order, are now packing their bags. The Kremlin’s aggressive push for ‘traditional values’ and its crackdown on dissent have soured the allure. The UK, by contrast, continues to function as a beacon of liberal stability, even as it grapples with its own economic headwinds.
The numbers are telling. Flights out of Moscow and St Petersburg are booked solid, with visa applications to Britain surging. This is not a flood but a steady leak of talent and capital. Let us not romanticise this; these are people who can afford to leave. They are doctors, engineers, and entrepreneurs. Their departure is a vote of no confidence in a regime that has become increasingly hostile to personal freedom. For the Russian economy, already battered by sanctions and oil price caps, this is another leak in the hull.
Why do they come here? The UK, for all its faults, offers something Russia cannot: a predictable legal system, a free press, and the right to say no. The City of London remains a magnet for global capital, even if the government’s fiscal incontinence has driven up gilt yields and stoked inflation. A balanced society, we are told, is a beacon. But beacons require fuel, and that fuel is borrowed money.
The irony is thick. Russia’s ‘traditional values’ pitch was always a marketing gimmick for a kleptocracy. Now it has driven away the very Westerners who might have helped modernise its economy. Meanwhile, the UK’s own social cohesion is under strain, but at least we are not arresting people for saying the wrong thing on Twitter. That is a comparative advantage, however modest.
Markets have noticed. The rouble is under pressure, and Russian bond yields are rising. Capital flight is a silent killer of currencies. The UK, by contrast, still enjoys a premium on its sovereign debt because investors trust we will not default. For now. But the Bank of England cannot keep hiking rates forever to defend the pound. The real defence is economic freedom, not moralising.
Let us be clear: the UK is not a paradise. Inflation is eating into savings, and the housing market is a rigged game. But when weighed against a nation that jails dissenters and calls it tradition, the choice is obvious. The expats are voting with their feet. The rest of us should remember that liberty is not a given; it must be funded by fiscal discipline and defended against demagogues.
So let the Kremlin fuss about ‘decadent’ Western values. Their loss is our gain, albeit a messy one. We will take their doctors and their capital, and we will try not to squander it on unproductive government spending. That is the bottom line.
