Australian cities have been rated some of the safest in the world in an era of heightened global security issues and social unrest, according to Mercer’s 2016 annual Quality of Living survey. Sydney also held onto its 10th position in the list of cities with the highest quality-of-living overall.
Other Australian cities followed Sydney in the overall rankings with Melbourne (15), followed by Perth (21), Adelaide (27), Canberra (28), and Brisbane (36).
Vienna continues its reign in the top spot for overall quality of living, followed by Zurich (2), Auckland (3), and Munich (4). Vancouver (5) is North America’s highest ranking city, and Singapore is the highest ranking Asian city, holding 26th place.
Mercer’s Quality of Living survey includes a personal safety ranking based on internal stability, crime levels, performance of local law enforcement, and the home country’s relationship with other countries. Safety, in particular, is a key consideration for multinational companies when sending expatriate workers abroad, both because it raises concerns about the personal safety of the expat and their family and because it has a significant impact on the cost of global compensation programmes.
Luxembourg tops the personal safety list and is followed by Bern, Helsinki, and Zurich – all tied in 2nd place. Baghdad (230) and Damascus (229) are the world’s least safe cities according to the ranking. All Australian cities are considered safe. Canberra, Sydney, Melbourne, and Perth all tied at 25th in the personal safety ranking.
