Dan Cheung, a verified Forex trader and social media personality, said he moved his family from the United Kingdom to Dubai earlier this year because he no longer felt safe in the UK and believed authorities were not sufficiently responsive to crime.
In a video addressing followers who asked why he had uprooted his family from Milton Keynes, Cheung said his Porsche family car had been broken into while he slept and his Mercedes-AMG had been keyed. He told viewers he was deterred from wearing expensive watches or driving high-end cars in the UK for fear of theft or violence and criticised what he described as a lack of “real repercussions” for some offenders.
Cheung, who said he was born and raised in Milton Keynes before living in London, said the move to Dubai offered a level of personal security that allowed him to wear luxury items and drive without what he characterised as persistent fear. He also cited rising phone theft in London, saying walking around with a phone out could be risky because of groups he described as bike gangs and masked riders stealing devices.
"I love the UK, I was born and bred here, but at the end of the day it just changed," he said in the video, adding that the environment had made him lose faith in the system and fearful for his family. He said many peers and business contacts already live in Dubai, which he said also made it attractive for networking and business growth.
Official data show crime remains a prominent public issue in the UK, though trends vary by offence. The Home Office reported that in the 12 months to March 2025 police recorded about 4.5 million victim-based offences, a decline of roughly 2% from the prior year. Theft offences in the UK carry penalties that depend on the value and circumstances of the offence, with maximum prison sentences of up to seven years for the most serious thefts and a range of community sentences and fines available for lesser offences.
Legal penalties differ in the United Arab Emirates, where theft can carry sentences of up to three years in prison, financial penalties, or deportation for foreign residents. Authorities in the UAE also treat attempted theft as a criminal offence with legal consequences, including imprisonment or fines.
Cheung referenced a 2025 Henley Private Wealth Migration Report that projected the UAE would attract a record number of millionaires this year, a pattern visible in wider migration trends. Industry figures cited by movers and relocation firms estimate hundreds of thousands of British expatriates now live in the UAE; recent estimates put the British community in Dubai at more than 240,000 and note thousands of British companies operate in the emirate.
Relocation firms have reported markedly increased interest from UK nationals. John Mason International Movers told industry outlets there was a substantial rise in enquiries from Britons wanting to relocate to the UAE, including a multiyear percentage increase through 2024 and a sharper increase in the year to March 2024.
Experts say motivations for relocating to Dubai commonly include climate, tax policies, business opportunities and lifestyle factors as well as perceptions of personal security. Cheung described Dubai as a “perfect middle point” for family and friends between the UK and Hong Kong and said being among like-minded people could boost his professional prospects.
Police forces and public officials in the UK have argued that crime patterns are complex and that agencies continue to prioritise public safety, while also pointing to the role of policing resources, sentencing, and social factors. Cheung’s comments add to a string of high-profile moves by wealthy Britons to cities such as Dubai, Monaco and Geneva, underscoring how personal assessments of safety, opportunity and quality of life influence international migration decisions.