Irish Regions Office Website

October 23, 2008

Urban Quality of Life

Initial results are being made available from the second full-scale Urban Audit (carried out in 2006/2007) to compare
living conditions in European cities. These are drawn from measuring more than 300 indicators on social matters, the economy, the environment, demographics, training and education, culture and recreation, mobility and transport, the information society, and civic involvement. 321 cities across the continent including Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway and Waterford (note: some data is awaiting an update reflecting Census 2006) plus Belfast and Derry were examined on criteria from recycling rates to crime figures and air cleanliness to housing stock. Achieving a good quality of life is emphasized by the renewed Lisbon Strategy and the Community Strategic Guidelines on Cohesion for 2007-2013 as a crucial instrument in attracting and retaining a skilled labour force, investors, tourists and residents to a city or region.

A detailed analysis of the raw data is currently underway and a Report on the state of European cities will be published in 2009. The full findings will provide valuable information on emerging trends which will be used to determine possible future priorities for EU Cohesion Policy funding and the European Strategy for growth and Jobs as they will enable investment to be better matched to observed needs. The process is to be repeated in full at three-year intervals with an annual data collection being planned for a limited number of key variables. Additionally, the information including city profiles and data covering core city centres, sub-city districts (initial results reveal striking evidence of social segregation within larger cities), and functional urban areas including wider commuter belts where appropriate, should also be usefully employed in national, regional and local decision-making.

http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/08/1387&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

Posted by iroronan at October 23, 2008 07:40 PM