The Austrian capital, Vienna, has beaten Australia's Melbourne to be named the world's most liveable city.

It's the first time a European city has topped the rankings of the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) annual survey.

The worldwide league table ranks 140 cities on a range of factors, including political and social stability, crime, education and access to healthcare.

In the survey, Manchester saw the biggest improvement of any European city, rising by 16 places to rank 35th.

Manchester's rise puts it ahead of London in the rankings by 13 places, the widest gap between the two cities since the survey began two decades ago.

The EIU said Manchester's jump in the rankings was due to an improved security score.

'Resilience'

The survey was criticised last year for demoting Manchester after the Manchester Arena attack which killed 22 victims.

This year, survey editor Roxana Slavcheva said Manchester had "shown resilience in the city's recovery from a recent, high-profile terrorist attack, which previously shook up stability".

Ms Slavcheva said security had also improved in "several western European cities" and Vienna's top place in the rankings reflected "a relative return to stability across much of Europe".