Last year, France regrouped its local government borders to create regions and eliminate extra layers of government; a recent survey and recent statistics have picked the winners and losers.
One trend that emerges: the south and the west take the honors. The region where the highest percentage of local population expressed themselves as happy where they are came is Languedoc-Roussillon-Midi-Pyrenees, one of the new ones. It’s home to the Pyrenees mountains and a good chunk of Mediterranean coast, as well as 50,000 new residents in the past year.
It finished just ahead of its next-door neighbor, one of the already-existing regions, Provence-Alpes-Cote-d’Azur, which includes the lower Alps, the Riviera and scenic Provence.
After that came the rugged coast and broad farmlands of Brittany in northwest France, where 95% said they were happy to live. That’s a healthy number when you consider by how much it tops the 73% who are pleased to live in the capital region, Ile de France.
At the bottom end, in 13th place, is Nord-Pas-de-Calais-Picardie, where only 55% are happy with where they live. Also with low scores: Centre-Val-de-Loire (a popular area with tourists) and Bourgogne-Franche-Comte.
