Simon Collins

‘That’s 6 in a row. #Melbourne is, once again, the world’s most liveable city!’ So tweeted a proud Daniel Andrews in August 2016, halfway through his first Premiership term. The following year, notwithstanding its cavalier attitude to seasons and rugby, the jewel in Victoria’s crown retained its leadership of The Economist Intelligence Unit’s aggregated ranking of urban healthcare, education, environment and infrastructure, and in 2018 and 2019 was only pipped at the post by Vienna, a metropolis previously notable mainly for its schnitzels and Nazi sympathisers.