Counties of the United Kingdom
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In the United Kingdom a county is a level of subnational division. Successive legislation has created different systems in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and in different parts of England.
County level local authorities in the UK are usually responsible for running education, emergency services, planning, transport, social services, and a number of other functions. They may have many districts or consist of a single authority.
The name county is also used for ceremonial counties and traditional counties which have no administrative function but are more often used as a geographic reference frame.
England
Counties in England are a level of subnational division and were originally based on the traditional counties of England. In 1889 county councils were set up which covered broadly similar areas known as administrative counties.
The changes which created the current structure began in 1965 when Greater London was created. In 1974 the administrative counties were abolished and replaced with metropolitan counties and non-metropolitan counties (now known as shire counties) with much altered borders. In the 1990s unitary authorities were also created which combine functions of county and district.
Unlike Scotland and Wales, England now has a mixed pattern of county level subnational division:
| Current structure of subnational entities in England (2006) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Region level: | Region | Region | Region | Region | |
| County level: | Metropolitan county | Shire county | Unitary authority | Greater London | |
| District level: | Metropolitan district | Shire district | n/a | London borough | |
| Parish level: | (Civil parish) | (Civil parish) | (Civil parish) | n/a | |
The areas of England that are appointed a Lord-Lieutenant are the Ceremonial counties of England.
Scotland
Scotland also used a system of administrative counties from 1889, based on the traditional counties of Scotland. The administrative counties were replaced in 1975 by an entirely different system of regions. The regions were abolished in 1996 and since then Scotland has been entirely divided into a system of unitary authorities.
The areas of Scotland that are appointed a Lord-Lieutenant are the Lieutenancy areas of Scotland.
Wales
The thirteen traditional counties of Wales were fixed by statute in 1539 (although counties such as Pembrokeshire date from 1138). The administrative counties of Wales created in 1889 were based on these. In 1974 a new system was created using vastly different entities. These were abolished in 1996 and since then Wales has been entirely divided into a system of unitary authorities.
The areas of Wales that are appointed a Lord-Lieutenant are the Preserved counties of Wales.
Northern Ireland
- Main article: Counties of Ireland for the entire island of Ireland including the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
See also
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