The UK/US ATC debate could go on forever. Lets face it there are occasional errors everywhere. I have had my share of G/As from both LHR and JFK, usually traffic slow to clear runway, to be fair.
My general perception is that there is a difference in culture. The UK is polite, precise, and seemingly unstressed, the US is informal, production oriented, and can sound stressed under pressure.
There are exceptions to both stereotypes. ( The most laid-back controller I ever came across was an ex-Marine in SJU.) Every time you entered his space there was a little "welcome back XYZ";when you left it "y'all take care now". In between he got the job done with a minimum of fuss and a sardonic sense of humour.
The biggest beef I have with the US ATC system is the use of "non-ICAO" R/T phraseology.
Standard phreaseology was developed so that those whose first language was not english would be able to clearly understand the intent behind various phrases. The same would apply to english speakers in a foreign environment. It is confusing and potentially dangerous to have to learn a number of colloquialisms to suit each country you fly through.
I have found that a number of airports seem to have a policy of "keep em high".
FRA, YYZ, MIA, ZUR all come to mind.
My problem with that is that I am acutely aware that there are many "nervous Nellies" amongst those in the back who pay my salary, and I strive to fly my airplane as smoothly and predictably as possible. A max drag/max rate descent is not what I would want to impose on those important customers in the normal course of events.
I know that I can do it and the aircraft can do it, as can it stop in remarkably short distances, but I do not accept that my reluctance to expose my pax to the edges of the performance envelope in any way indicates that I am a "B team" aviator.
No doubt 411A will disagree with me.