Published three months after the controversial Brexit referendum, this new European Commission report is meant to give European leaders "a roadmap that can be used to navigate the pressures and opportunities facing Europe."
For Brits, though, the reaction on social media has been somewhat more divisive.
New EU #SocialProgress Index shows startling view of regions across all 28 states #EUWRC pic.twitter.com/LhuOQo9CBP https://t.co/X0PcV4noPH
— Alexandra Pentaraki (@APentaraki) October 11, 2016
There were even some joking suggestions of favoritism at play.
Back in June, the Scots overwhelmingly voted to remain in the European Union — in direct contradiction to the majority of English voters, who chose to leave.
The EU wide report, which was funded by a US charity, the Social Progress Imperative, used regional statistics to determine which countries are more socially progressive and what factors allow citizens to enjoy a better quality of life. The first of its kind, it gave Scotland an overall quality-of-life score of 74.01 out of 100, 73.18 for Northern Ireland, 72.68 for England, and 72.04 for Wales.
Michael Green, Executive Director of the Social Progress Imperative, said:
"Perhaps the most surprising finding is that the Brexit narrative of a divided United Kingdom, split between the privileged ‘London Bubble' and more deprived regions, is not evident in terms of quality of life."
So just what is it about the land of fantastic scenery and fried Mars bars that makes it such a good place to live?
Tolerance
The report claims that the Scots are far ahead on issues like tolerance for minorities and gays, as well as for the disabled.
Women too, are said to be more equal in Scotland than in the rest of the UK.
Researchers said that this meant that there is more potential in Scottish society to meet the basic needs of its citizens, with more opportunities to improve their lives and better conditions for their communities.
Education
Scotland and Northern Ireland were also far more progressive when it came to education, with higher attainment of degree-level qualifications, commitment to lifelong learning and school enrollment rates all outclassing England.
Personal Freedoms
The report found that the Scots enjoy more personal freedoms than the English, which they judged by the extent of young people not in education, employment or training and people's satisfaction with their freedom to make life choices.
The Environment
Scotland scored well on environmental quality, with better air pollution and protection of natural habitats figures. England meanwhile, scored the lowest out of the four UK nations. It bears mentioning that Scotland only has a population of a little over 5 million, whereas England has more than 53 million people.
However, it's not all bad news for the English. They beat out the Scots in a few key areas.
Life expectancy is much higher in England than in Scotland, and the Scots had the worst ratings for personal safety of anywhere in the UK. And in what is perhaps unsurprising to anyone who has actually eaten a deep-fried Mars bar — a Scottish delicacy of sorts — the Scots were revealed to have the lowest score for "nutrition" than any of the other home nations.
Across the rest of Europe, the report awarded Finland, Denmark, Sweden and the Netherlands the top honour of having the best quality of life in Europe. The worst results meanwhile, were given to Romania and Bulgaria.
