Vienna is the best city in the world to live in: German-speaking cities dominate quality of life rankings

New York, Paris and London might dominate in the world of fashion, nightlife and entertainment.  But it is a more low-key city that has been crowned the best place in the world to live. 

The Austrian capital of Vienna beat 229 other cities to take the title in the 18th Mercer Quality of Life survey.

First place: Vienna, Austria beat out 229 other cities to take the title in the 18th Mercer Quality of Life survey

Second place: Despite its high cost of living, Zurich, Switzerland, has once again performed well in the survey

Third place: The city of Auckland, New Zealand, offers residents stable infrastructure and plenty of housing

European cities dominate the top 10. Zurich and Geneva in Switzerland appear at numbers two and eight respectively, while the Danish capital of Copenhagen comes in ninth place. 

Three German cities are also in the top 10, with Munich, Dusseldorf and Frankfurt ranked at four, six and seven.

But British cities have failed to make an impact on the list this year, with London the highest place at 39. The only other English city to make the cut is Birmingham at number 53.  

Fourth place: The German city of Munich maintains a sense of history while offering modern amenities

Fifth place: Vancouver, Canada, is the best place to live in North America, offering a high quality of healthcare

Sixth place: Divided by the majestic Rhine, Dusseldorf, in Germany is well-known its fashion and art scene

Scotland fares slightly better with three cities - Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen - ranked at 46, 55 and 59, respectively. Belfast was ranked in 64th place. 

Access to healthcare, quality of education, social and economic conditions, housing and environmental factors are all taken into consideration for the rankings. 

The survey is used by international corporations to assess how safe it is to send their employees to a given city. 

Seventh Place: Frankfurt, Germany's financial capital, provides excellent hospitals and stunning architecture

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Eight place: Despite its high cost of living, Geneva is one of the most desirable places to live in Switzerland

One place where safety has become a more pressing issue over the last year is Paris, where a string of high-profile terror strikes causing the French capital to fall 10 places to 37th. 

Crime and personal safety are also factors that keep many US cities out of the top spots, with none of them managing to break the top 20. 

San Francisco is the highest ranking at 28, followed by Boston at 34 and the Hawaiian city of Honolulu at 35. Chicago and New York City come in at 43 and 44 respectively. 

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Ninth place: The Danish capital of Copenhagen offers its residents an excellent quality of life

Tenth place: With one of the world's most distinctive harboursides, Sydney, Australia, rounds out the top 10

List of the Best Cities in the World to live
1 Vienna, Austria
2 Zurich, Switzerland
3 Auckland, New Zealand
4 Munich, Germany
5 Vancouver, Canada
6 Dusseldorf, Germany
7 Frankfurt, Germany
8 Geneva, Switzerland
9 Copenhagen, Denmark
10 Sydney, Australia
11 Amsterdam, Netherlands
12 Wellington, New Zealand
13 Berlin, Germany
14 Bern, Switzerland
15 Toronto, Canada
16 Melbourne, Australia
17 Ottawa, Canada
18 Hamburg, Germany
19 Luxembourg, Luxembourg
20 Stockholm, Sweden
21 Brussels, Belgium
22 Perth, Australia
23 Montreal, Canada
24 Stuttgart, Germany
25 Nurnberg, Germany
26 Singapore, Singapore
27 Adelaide, Australia
28 San Francisco, United States
29 Canberra, Australia
30 Helsinki, Finland
31 Oslo, Norway
32 Calgary, Canada
33 Dublin, Ireland
34 Boston, United States
35 Honolulu, United States
36 Brisbane, Australia
37 Paris, France
38 Lyon, France
39 Barcelona, Spain
40 London, United Kingdom
41 Milan, Italy
42 Lisbon, Portugal
43 Chicago, United States
44 New York City, United States
45 Tokyo, Japan
46 Edinburgh, United Kingdom
47 Kobe, Japan
48 Seattle, United States
49 Los Angeles, United States
50 Yokohama, Japan

Reference: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3459417/Vienna-best-city-world-live-London-Paris-New-York-don-t-make-35-German-speaking-cities-dominate-quality-life-rankings.html

UK named one of the best in Europe for job opportunities

The UK, Estonia, Norway and Austria offer the best job prospects in Europe, according to a study that ranks employment prospects across the continent.

These countries have some of the lowest levels of youth unemployment in Europe, offer a wider range of skilled jobs and have the highest proportion of temporary contracts, said jobs website Glassdoor. Its research focused on eight indicators across 17 countries, including the level of involuntary part-time work and whether youth unemployment has improved since the financial crisis.

By contrast, Greece, Spain and Portugal offer the worst prospects for job seekers, said the report, whose findings are supported by official data. These countries have the highest unemployment rate in general, at 24.6pc, 21.6pc and 12.4pc respectively, according to separate figures from Eurostat.

"Greece, Spain and Portugal have continued to struggle with double-digit unemployment and slow economic growth - partly due to inflexible labour market regulations that have proven difficult to reform in recent years,” said Andrew Chamberlain, chief economist at Glassdoor.

Greece and Spain also have the highest levels of people aged under 25 out of work. Greece had a youth unemployment rate of 47.9pc as of August 2015, according to Eurostat, while in Spain the figure is about the same at 47.7pc.

In the UK, youth unemployment peaked at just over 20pc in 2011, but is now down to 17pc, close to the pre-crisis average of 15pc.

Temporary contracts, which tend to offer little flexibility, low pay and job security, are the most common in Spain, the Netherlands and Portugal, affecting more than 20pc of workers in each country. In comparison, only 6pc of workers in the UK are employed on temporary employment contracts.

While some workers prefer short-term contracts, the report pointed out that involuntary part-time work has increased across most European countries since 2008, except in Germany, Belgium and Sweden. The proportion of those who work part time, but would rather work full time, is highest in Italy, Spain and Ireland, at around one-in-10 workers.

The 28 countries in the EU account for just under a quarter of world GDP, outpacing the US' contribution of 22pc and China’s 13pc share.

Reference: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/jobs/12082920/UK-named-one-of-the-best-in-Europe-for-job-opportunities.html