Aberdeen Ranks In Top 5 UK Cities To Live And Work

Published 5th Nov 2015

Aberdeen has ranked within the top five UK cities to work and live in.

The results are from the '2015 Good Growth For Cities Index' by PwC.

The Granite City sits in fifth place, after claiming the second spot in 2013.

Edinburgh has claimed second spot this year, with Reading coming out on top.

PwC say Aberdeen's fall is due to the impact of lower oil prices slowly filtering through to the wider North-East business community.

Paul Brewer, PwC's government and public sector lead in Scotland said: "While Aberdeen's oil wealth has consistently influenced high scores in areas such as jobs, income and skills, the lower for longer oil price backdrop is beginning to chip away at that. It’s vital that Aberdeen future-proofs itself, extending its success beyond the life of North Sea oil exploration.

"As we've outlined in our Northern Lights and Opportunities in Adversity reports, there is real potential for the North-east to build on its exceptional skill base and reputation for innovation to create a world class decommissioning hub, or to focus on those transferable skills and encourage investment in other sectors such as renewables, food and drink or technology.

"With net investment in Scotland growing only as a result of the Scottish Government's infastructure programme, increased corporate investment will be essential if more jobs are to be created across a more diverse range of sectors in all of our city regions. Our city deals, as they progress into delivery, must act as a catalyst to private sector investment as well as boosting public investment if they are to achieve their objectives.”