Dales offer the best quality of life

The countryside of North Yorkshire has scored top marks in the Government's "quality of life barometer" for such assets as good air and water quality, abundant wildlife and a high rate of employment.

Key indictors for the barometer are outlined in a consultation document titled Sustainability Counts, published by the Department of Environment.

The indicators range from the traditional benchmarks of economic growth, social investment and employment, to the population of wild birds, river quality and air pollution.

In the barometer, North Yorkshire is among the top five counties in the country for GCSE results and low unemployment.

The region also has good air quality and some of the cleanest rivers in the country, including the River Wharfe which runs through parts of Craven.

Another of the sustainable development indicators includes using 20 common farmland and 41 woodland birds to show the ups and downs of animals and plants throughout the country.

The statistics show the strongest region for the skylark -- a farmland bird -- is Yorkshire, while generally throughout the country its numbers have slumped by three million breeding birds in the last 25 years.

John Prescott, deputy prime minister, said the quality of life barometer was designed to reflect people's concerns about health, housing, jobs and the environment.

Commenting on the data, he said it would allow people and businesses to see how their own actions could generate wealth without harming the environment.

"We are aiming for cleaner growth," he said.

"It is a matter of gain, not pain; generating jobs and prosperity in a way which uses energy wisely, creates less waste and pollution and is fairer to all in society."

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