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Tired of London, tired of life? Londoners remain the UK’s most miserable people

London remains the UK’s most miserable region despite satisfaction levels increasing in every category, according to a report released last week.

The annual commission by the Office for National Statistics emerged to expose that the nation’s capital was once again languishing behind the rest – a position that hasn’t changed since the nationwide report was introduced in 2010.

Approximately 165,000 over 16s take part in the survey and were asked a number of questions to generally establish their levels of happiness and anxiety.

The health, employment and relationship status of the participants generally have the greatest impact on results.

Despite the damning statistics, the overview is misleading as London and other UK regions in general are slowly improving in all of the determining factors.

The 2013/2014 survey illustrates an increase in life satisfaction, worthwhile sense of living and happiness, in turn with a drop in anxiety rates on the previous year’s results.

The statistics show a continuous trend that has developed since the first annual report was released in 2011/2012 and experts believe national successes like the London Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee may have induced the upturn.

The capital, however, is still well behind Northern Ireland and its neighbouring South East region and is still considerably the most anxious area under investigation as it sits well above the nationwide average.

The results coincide this week with London supposedly overtaking Hong Kong as the world’s most expensive city to live in, suggesting a correlation between financial and emotional satisfaction.

The report, confirmed by Savills estate agents, exposes the unrivalled costs due to soaring rent prices and the strength of the pound.

Picture courtesy of Chris Beckett, with thanks

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