City inhabitants nearly three times more productive than UK average
City residents account for nearly three times the GDP output per person than the UK average, according to a new study by trade union GMB (release).
The study measures GDP using the purchasing power standard (PPS) per individual, which is intended to eliminate differences in purchasing power between regions and countries.
By this measure, GDP per person for people living in inner London is 2.92 times the UK average and 3.28 times that of the 27 countries in the EU.
People living in the UK generally have a greater GDP per person than those in other EU members, with the average citizen having a 13 per cent greater output than the average person living in the EU27.
The regions in the UK with the greatest GDP per inhabitant after inner London are North Eastern Scotland (1.44 times the UK average, 1.62 times the EU27 average) and Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire (1.27 times the UK average, 1.27 times EU27).
The region with the lowest GDP per inhabitant, by comparison, is West Wales and the Valleys (0.63 times UK average and 0.7 times EU27), followed by Cornwall and Isles of Scilly (0.64 times UK average).
Regional GDP – 2010 figures
| PPS per inhabitant | PPS per inhabitant (% of EU27 average) | PPS per inhabitant (% of UK average) | |
| UK | 27,500 | 113 | 100 |
| EU 27 | 24,500 | 100 | 89 |
| Top five in UK | |||
| Inner London | 80300 | 328 | 292 |
| North Eastern Scotland | 39,500 | 162 | 144 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 34,900 | 143 | 127 |
| Cheshire | 28,800 | 118 | 105 |
| Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Bristol/Bath area | 28,200 | 115 | 103 |
| Bottom five in UK | |||
| West Wales and The Valleys | 17,200 | 70 | 63 |
| Cornwall and Isles of Scilly | 17,600 | 72 | 64 |
| Tees Valley and Durham | 18,900 | 77 | 69 |
| Lincolnshire | 19,100 | 78 | 69 |
| Merseyside | 19,800 | 81 | 72 |
Source: GMB
Note: Inner London boroughs are: Camden, Canada, Hammersmith and Fulham, Kensington and Chelsea, Wandsworth, Westminster, Hackney, Haringey, Islington, Lambeth, Newham, Southwark, Lewisham and Tower Hamlets.