Please find below my reply to the recent article "Lock the gates". I hope it will also serve as my introduction as I didn't make one before getting stuck into the "God as woman" debate a while ago - sorry.
My partner Andy and I holiday in Goa every year (nine times so far) and we very much hope that one day we won't have to make the return journey back to the U.K. Over the years we have made quite a few Goan friends and it is our intention to fit in with and make some contribution to life in Goa, while reserving the right to speak our minds as we see fit, of course. Only speaking to other Brits and living off Heinz Beans is not for us! So my first point must be don't assume that everyone from Britain is the same. We are "ordinary" people and a move to Goa should allow us a better standard of living and semi retirement, although we will have to work very hard over the next few years to make it happen. This leads to the issue of inflated property prices. This is potentially a serious problem and it is one that we are very familar with. The Isle of Wight is a beautiful place with slightly milder weather than most of Britain. It is popular both as a holiday and a retirement destination and house prices have shot up recently; some people simply cannot afford to buy and others (like us) have to remain in properties that are too small. However I am not convinced that this will be such an issue for Goa. The "typical" Brit looking for a cheap place in the sun is far more likely to want a newly built beachside appartment in a complex than a village home or a city appartment. I think this makes over inflation of house prices unlikely outside of the immediate beach-belt area. So how can Goa protect itself? As I have already said, I am not sure that it needs to, but the one suggestion I do have may surprise you. Make it easier for us to live in Goa long term! At the moment people come on short term holiday or business visas which do nothing to encourage a long term commitment. E.g. Should we sell our flat on the U.K.? What happens if we are unable to renew our visas? A lifetime visa, or better still the chance to become (Goan first, Indian second!) citizens, would giving us greater security and encourage us to invest ALL our money in Goa, hopefully creating employment for local people. Justine Andrews