A survey of New Zealand’s twelve largest cities has revealed that the quality of life throughout the country is improving.

The Quality of Life Project surveyed the responses of residents from Rodney, North Shore, Waitakere, Auckland, Manukau, Hamilton, Tauranga, Porirua, Hutt, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin. It studied aspects such as people, knowledge and skills, health, safety, housing, social connectedness, civil and political rights, economic standard of living, economic development, the natural environment, and the built environment, revealing that 90 per cent of city-dwellers were either happy (52 per cent) or very happy (38 per cent) with their lifestyle.

“This report shows that urban New Zealand is essentially a great place to live, work and play,” said Jim Harland, Chief Executive of Dunedin City Council and Quality of Life Project sponsor.

“City residents feel that they enjoy a good quality of life, are happy and satisfied with their lives and report that they are in good health. On the whole, they have a sense of pride in their city and consider that their cities offer them a culturally rich and diverse arts scene."
 

Amongst several positive factors, the survey revealed that the economy is strong, household incomes have increased, the rate of crime has fallen and unemployment is at an all-time low. Moreover, 80 per cent of New Zealand’s economic activity and population growth is set to take place in the twelve major cities over the next 20 years.

There was slight cause for concern emerging from the rapid growth of the cities, with graffiti, noise pollution and litter on the increase, however, these rates remain comparably low.

Life expectancy has increased throughout all twelve cities.