Subdivisions of the United Kingdom 

A map of the United Kingdom
White = England
Yellow = Northern Ireland
Blue = Scotland
Red = Wales

The subdivisions of the United Kingdom are complex, multi-layered and non-uniform. As a result of a lack of a formal British constitution, and owing to a convoluted history of the formation of the United Kingdom, a variety of terms exist which are used to refer to them.1

The United Kingdom, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe, comprises England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. These four are variously described as parts, countries, constituent countries, or nations. Wales is at times referred to as a principality, and Northern Ireland as a province. The four are sometimes collectively referred to as the Home Nations, particularly in sporting contexts. A publication submitted by the UK to the United Nations Economic and Social Council states the four are "constituent parts" and "countries", but "should not be considered as first-order administrative divisions".2

Historically, the subnational divisions of the UK have been the county3 and the ecclesiastical parish, whilst following the emergence of a unified parliament of the United Kingdom, the ward and constituency have been pan-UK political subdivisions. More contemporary divisions include Lieutenancy areas and the statistical territories defined with the modern NUTS:UK and ISO 3166-2:GB systems. For local government in the United Kingdom, England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales each have their own system of administrative and geographic demarcation.

Contents

History

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Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (July 2008)
Main article: History of the formation of the United Kingdom
Euler diagram of the British Isles

This structure was formed by the union agreed between the former sovereign states, the Kingdom of England (which included the conquered principality of Wales) and the Kingdom of Scotland in the Treaty of Union and enacted by the Acts of Union 1707 to form the united Kingdom of Great Britain (1707-1800); followed by the Act of Union 1800, which united Great Britain with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The independence of the Irish Free State in 1922, and the partition of Ireland, resulted in the current United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Wales was incorporated into the English legal system through the Laws in Wales Acts 1535-1542 the earlier Statute of Rhuddlan having restricted but not abolished Welsh Law following the Edwardian conquest in 1282. As a result England and Wales are treated as a single entity for some purposes, principally that they share a legal system (see English law), while Scotland and Northern Ireland each have a separate legal system (see Scots Law and Northern Ireland law).

Northern Ireland was the first part of the UK to have a devolved government, under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, until the Parliament of Northern Ireland was suspended in 1972. After a period of direct rule by the UK government and some abortive attempts at reinstating devolved government during the Troubles, the modern Northern Ireland Assembly was established in 1998, and is currently in operation following a number of periods of suspension. The complex history of Northern Ireland has led to differing views as to its status. The term "Province" is used more often by unionist and British commentators to refer to Northern Ireland, but not by nationalists.

In the UK

England

Main articles: England, Local government in England, and Subdivisions of England

England has no devolved national legislature or government.

The highest level subdivisions of England are the nine regions. The London region, known as Greater London, is further divided into the City of London and 32 London boroughs. This is administered by the Greater London Authority. The other regions made up of metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties and unitary authorities. The counties are further divided into districts (which can be called cities, boroughs, royal boroughs, metropolitan boroughs or districts). The unitary authorities effectively combine the functions of counties and districts.

Below the district level, civil parishes exist, though not uniformly. Parish or town councils exist for villages and small towns; they only rarely exist for communities within urban areas. They are prevented from existing within Greater London.

Commonly, though not administratively, England's geography is divided into ceremonial counties (also known as the geographic counties), which closely mirror the traditional counties. Each ceremonial county has a Lord Lieutenant, who is the monarch's representative.

Northern Ireland

Main articles: Northern Ireland and Local government in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland has the Northern Ireland Assembly and Northern Ireland Executive established under the Good Friday Agreement. During periods where the devolved institutions were suspended, executive government in Northern Ireland was administered directly by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and laws made in the United Kingdom Parliament - known as "direct rule" in contrast to devolution.

For local government, Northern Ireland is divided into 26 districts, which are unitary authorities.

Northern Ireland is divided into six traditional counties. Though widely used, these no longer serve any administrative purpose.

Scotland

Main articles: Scotland, Local government in Scotland, and Subdivisions of Scotland

Scotland has a devolved legislature, the Scottish Parliament, with a government, known as the Scottish Government since 2007. This is legally referred to as the Scottish Executive in the Scotland Act 1998 and by the UK Government.

Below the national level, Scotland has 32 council areas (unitary authorities). Below this uniform level of subdivision, there are varying levels of area committees in the larger rural council areas, and many small community councils throughout the country, although these are not universal. Scottish community councils have few if any powers beyond being a forum for raising issues of concern.

Wales

Main articles: Wales and Local government in Wales

Wales has an elected, devolved assembly, the National Assembly for Wales, along with the Welsh Assembly Government.

Below the national level, Wales consists of 22 unitary authorities: 10 county boroughs, 9 Counties, and 3 Cities. Below these are community councils, which have powers similar to English parish councils.

Terminology

Further information: Countries of the United Kingdom

Various terms have been used to describe England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. This fact is illustrated by the following two tables.

Terms used for England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales individually

The following table presents examples for the terms most commonly-used to describe the countries of the United Kingdom. The references are listed per country, and in some instances are used more than once, when more than one country is referred to in the source.

Term England Northern Ireland Scotland Wales
Constituent country 45 45 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 45
Constituent part 15 15 15 15
Country 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 27 28 29 33 30 31 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 16 20 47 27 28 29 33 31 34 35 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 36 56 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 16 18 20 26 66 2 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 16 20 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 27 27 28 29 33 31 105 34 35 36 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 65 64
Country within a country 16 16 16 16
Division 106 106 106 106
Home country 107 52
Home nation
Kingdom - 108 -
Nation 106 106 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116106 106
Part 72 72 2 72 72
Principality - - - 18117
Province - 18118 - -
Region 119 119 119 119

"Countries of the United Kingdom"

The following table presents 36 reliable sources that use the term "Countries of the United Kingdom" when referring. to England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales taken together.


Term Reliable sources
Countries of the United Kingdom 120 121 122 123 124 125 57 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154

Legal terminology

Terminology in the Acts of Union

Current Legal Terminology
 This section does not cite any references or sources.
Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (October 2008)

The Interpretation Act 1978 provides some definitions for terms relating the countries of the United Kingdom. Use of these terms in other legislation is interpreted following the definitions in the 1978 Act. The definitions are listed below

Note that there is no definition of Scotland or Northern Ireland. Even in the Scotland Act 1998 there is no delineation of the country, with the definition in section 126 simply providing that Scotland includes "so much of the internal waters and territorial sea of the United Kingdom as are adjacent to Scotland". See also Scottish Adjacent Waters Boundaries Order 1999 and Anglo-Scottish border.

Informal divisions

There are also many informal, historical and special purpose regional designations. Some such as the Highlands of Scotland have or have had, to some extent, formal boundaries. Others such as the London commuter belt are more diffuse. Some such as Snowdonia (Eryri) have a formal boundary in some contexts; in this case as a National Park. Others such as The Fens of eastern England are quite distinctly defined by geography but do not form any official entity.

International subdivisions

Both Eurostat and the International Organization for Standardization have developed a subdivision and codes for the UK. See NUTS:UK and ISO 3166-2:GB.

References

  1. ^ Scottish Parliament. "Your Scotland questions; Is Scotland a country?". scottish.parliament.uk. Retrieved on 2008-08-01. "As the UK has no written constitution in the usual sense, constitutional terminology is fraught with difficulties of interpretation and it is common usage nowadays to describe the four constituent parts of the UK (Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland) as “countries”."
  2. ^ a b c United Nations Economic and Social Council (August 2007). "Ninth United Nations Conference on the standardization of Geographical Names" (PDF). unstats.un.org. Retrieved on 2008-10-21.
  3. ^ Bryne, T., Local Government in Britain, (1994)
  4. ^ a b c d Office for National Statistics (2004-09-17). "Beginners' Guide to UK Geography: Administrative Geography". statistics.gov.uk. Retrieved on 2008-04-16.
  5. ^ a b c d "DCA". Retrieved on 2008-06-30. "nationally in this context will be taken to mean within the United Kingdom as a whole or within the constituent country (England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland), or both", at www.dca.gov.uk
  6. ^ Vickers, Dan; Rees, Phil. "Creating the UK National Statistics 2001 output area classification.". Journal of the Royal Statistical Society: Series A (Statistics in Society) 170 (2): 379(25). 
  7. ^ Bramley, Glen. "The Sudden Rediscovery of Housing Supply as a Key Policy Challenge.". Housing Studies 22 (2): 221(21). 
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  9. ^ Dixon, Tim. "Integrating Sustainability into Brownfield Regeneration: Rhetoric or Reality? – An Analysis of the UK Development Industry.". Journal of Property Research 23 (3): 237(31). 
  10. ^ Turner, Karen. "Additional precision provided by region-specific data: The identification of fuel-use and pollution-generation coefficients in the Jersey economy.". Regional Studies 40 (4): 347(18). 
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  14. ^ Hodges, Ron; Macniven, Louise; Mellett, Howard. "Annual General Meetings of NHS Trusts: Devolving Power or Ritualising Accountability?". Financial Accountability & Management 20 (4): 377(23). 
  15. ^ a b c d about.com, Matt Rosenberg. "Country, State, and Nation".
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  17. ^ "England". Britannica Student Encyclopedia. Retrieved on 2008-04-27.
  18. ^ a b c d "ISO 3166-2". ISO. Retrieved on 2008-06-30. BS ISO 3166-2:2007 (second edition released 2007-12-13) consolidates changes detailed in ISO 3166-2 Newsletter I-9 (pg 11) which uses the terms "country" to describe England and Scotland, "principality" to describe Wales, and "province" to describe Northern Ireland, at www.iso.org
  19. ^ British Embassy. "England". britishembassy.gov.uk. Retrieved on 2008-05-11.
  20. ^ a b c d the Office for National Statistics states in its glossary that "In the context of the UK, each of the four main subdivisions (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland) is referred to as a country". see statistics.gov.uk
  21. ^ England Rural Development Programme 2000 - 2006: 5.1 Description of the Current Situation - "5.1.2 England is a country of some 50,351 square miles". Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs at www.defra.gov.uk
  22. ^ British Embassy - What are Britain's national costumes? England: "Although England is a country rich in folklore and traditions, it has no definitive 'national' costume". British Embassy, Vilnius - Special features at www.britishembassy.gov.uk
  23. ^ The Official Yearbook of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 2003 - "England is a country of mostly low hills and plains. ". 2003 Yearbook at www.statistics.gov.uk
  24. ^ Civil Service Policy Hub - Performance pay for teachers (Last Updated: 12/2/2008) - "Many more schemes have appeared in recent years in other countries such as England, Sweden and Singapore". News item at www.nationalschool.gov.uk
  25. ^ Results for England from the UK 2007 Survey of Public Opinion of Forestry, carried out on behalf of the Forestry Commission, November 2007 - "The same principle is of course also valid for individual countries such as England, where an impractical level of afforestation would be required" PUBLIC OPINION OF FORESTRY 2007 - ENGLAND at www.forestry.gov.uk
  26. ^ a b The Oxford English Dictionary, in its 1893 edition, includes under "country" the meaning "3. The territory or land of a nation ; usually an independent state, or a region once independent and still distinct in race, language, institutions, or historical memories, as England, Scotland, and Ireland, in the United Kingdom, etc."
  27. ^ a b c d e "Foreign and International Law". Library of Congress. "The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the collective name of four countries, England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland."
  28. ^ a b c d Europa, the European Untion Portal. "The education system in the United Kingdom". "It must be remembered that the UK is actually four countries and that there are some differences in the education system across these four countries.
  29. ^ a b c d British Medical Journal (BMJ). "Is the English NHS underfunded?". "The NHS is broadly similar in each of the four countries, but it is funded at different levels."
  30. ^ a b D. EVANS, E. KULA, H. SEZER (7 October 2005). "Regional welfare weights for the UK". "Estimates of these weights are then provided for the four countries comprising the UK."
  31. ^ a b c d London School of Economics. "Government failing to learn valuable lessons from UK health care experiment". "the health service across all four countries."
  32. ^ Ordnance Survey (28 October 2000). "Mapping mission offers close-up on England".
  33. ^ a b c The Grocer (23-June-07). "Why school policies don't make the grade". "Why school food policies don't make the grade: four countries, four sets of policies."
  34. ^ a b c Edinburgh Evening News (7 July 2008). "Our health service is the envy of the world, so let's cherish it". 
  35. ^ a b c Channel 4 News (28 June 2006). "Do the Scots subsidise the English". 
  36. ^ a b c Commonwealth Secretariat. "United Kingdom - Geography".
  37. ^ Research in Comparative & International Education, THERESA THONHAUSER, DAVID L. PASSMORE (2006). "ISO 9000 in Education: a comparison between the United States and England". A study on “two different countries, the United States and England.”
  38. ^ a b c Birrell, Derek, Public Money & Management, Volume 27, Number 5 (November 2007). Divergence in Policy Between Great Britain and Northern Ireland: The Case of Local Taxation, http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/bpl/pmam/2007/00000027/00000005/art00006. 
  39. ^ a b c NHS National Library for Health (April 2008). "NHS Structure: the impact of devolution". “Up until this time the NHS policy differences between the four countries had been marginal,”
  40. ^ a b c Sarah Carter, LLRX (2001). "The UK Legal System". “The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland consists of four countries forming three distinct jurisdictions each having its own court system and legal profession: England & Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.”
  41. ^ a b c Nuffield Trust (2006-11-29). "Values and health policy in the European Union (summary)".
  42. ^ a b c TOEFL. "Four nations in one". “The UK may be relatively small, but it is extremely diverse. It is home to 60 million people and comprises four countries – England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales – each with a distinct history and culture. “
  43. ^ a b c New Policy Institute. "Education-related websites".
  44. ^ a b c Post-News Education.com, The Denver Newspaper Agency (March 18, 2007). "A Crucial vote in Northern Ireland".  “Northern Ireland is one of four countries that make up what is known as the United Kingdom, or U.K.”
  45. ^ World Wildlife Foundation. "Natural Rivers Programme – UK".
  46. ^ USA Today. "England". 
  47. ^ General Teaching Council for Northern Ireland (1 May 2008). "Changing Assessment Practice Process: Principles and Standards". "..in all four countries of the UK: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland."
  48. ^ EADT24 (21 July 2008). "Belfast trip cannot be underestimated". 
  49. ^ British Dental Journal (24 May 2008). Northern Ireland turns to private sector to solve dentist shortage, http://www.nature.com/bdj/journal/v204/n10/full/sj.bdj.2008.442.html. 
  50. ^ Adfero (15 July 2008). "Mental health survey for people in Northern Ireland". 
  51. ^ British Council. "Why come to Northern Ireland?".
  52. ^ a b E-HEALTH-MEDIA LTD (2005). "Northern Ireland unveils plans for electronic records".
  53. ^ The Food Standards Agency (1 May 2007). "Draft Official Feed and Food Controls Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2007".
  54. ^ Pat Stacey, Herald.ie (July 23 2008). "Dignified look at tragic loss of life". 
  55. ^ 22 things you should know about Northern Ireland. “The Northern Ireland economy is the smallest of the four countries that make up the United Kingdom.”
  56. ^ Olivia Fens (11/07/200). "Women obtaining abortion pill online".
  57. ^ a b c British Geriatrics Society (May 2006). "THE DISCHARGE OR TRANSFER OF CARE OF FRAIL OLDER PEOPLE FOR COMMUNITY HEALTH AND SOCIAL SUPPORT". “Methods of joint working between health and social care agencies vary across the 4 countries of the United Kingdom.”
  58. ^ a b The Four Countries - Social Care Information Network (27 March 2006). "Leeds Workshop 27 March 2006 Report". “The workshop was designed to be an initial opportunity to bring together leading information specialists and policy makers from the four countries of the UK“
  59. ^ a b European Union Youth Portal. "Travelling Europe, The United Kingdom". "The United Kingdom is made up of four countries: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales."
  60. ^ a b BBC World Service Teacher Blog - Anne Bell (12 April 2008). "Union Jack Day". 
  61. ^ a b European Commission Expert Working Group on the social determinants of health inequalities (2-3 March 2006). "Tackling Health Inequalities – The UK Situation". "The UK consists of four countries England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland."
  62. ^ a b various. Oxford Journals 'Parliamentary Affairs' Research Articles (3 summaries), http://pa.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/search?session_query_ref=rbs.queryref_1216878387342&COLLECTIONS=hw1&JC=parlij&FULLTEXT=(Northern+AND+Ireland)+AND+%22four+countries%22&FULLTEXTFIELD=lemcontent&RESOURCETYPE=HWCIT&ABSTRACTFIELD=lemhwcompabstract&TITLEFIELD=lemhwcomptitle. 
  63. ^ a b Cancer Research. "UK Bladder Cancer mortality statistics".
  64. ^ a b UNICEF (16 August 2002). "UNICEF salutes Scottish Bill on right to breastfeed in public". 
  65. ^ a b CBC News (November 23, 2006). "The 39th Parliament Nations within nations". 
  66. ^ British Embassy in the United States of America
  67. ^ Explanatory Notes to Waste And Emissions Trading Act 2003
  68. ^ Census 2001 - Ethnicity and religion in England and Wales
  69. ^ House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 28 Feb 2000 (pt 35)
  70. ^ Alex Salmond MP MSP, (nationalist) First Minister of Scotland calls Scotland a "country". First Minister Alex Salmond at openscotland.gov.uk
  71. ^ Joint statement released on behalf of Helen Liddell MP, (unionist) Secretary of State for Scotland, and Jack McConnell MSP, (unionist) First Minister for Scotland, which states "Scotland is a country with a proud history, with strong traditions and customs". Scotland Office Press Release 2002-11-21 at www.scotlandoffice.gov.uk
  72. ^ a b c d e Britannica describes Scotland as "the most northerly of the four parts of the United Kingdom" and later as a "country" four times in its introduction to the topic (nation or subdivision is not used).Scotland at www.britannica.com
  73. ^ Encarta describes Scotland as "one of the four national units that make up the United Kingdom" and later as a "country" two times in its introduction to the topic (nation or subdivision is not used).Scotland at encarta.msn.com
  74. ^ Patricia Ferguson, MSP, Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport - Scotland is a country known world-wide for its history and its landscape. Historic Scotland: Scotland's Historic Environment (Published 2007) at www.historic-scotland.gov.uk
  75. ^ RURAL DEVELOPMENT REGULATION (EC) NO 1257/1999: PLAN FOR SCOTLAND. "5.2 Scotland is a country of some 30,414 square miles" Chapter 5 at www.scotland.gov.uk
  76. ^ Jack McConnell MSP, (former) First Minister for Scotland - Scotland is a country with strong traditions and a proud history of achievement. Welcome Message to 'scotlandnow' at www.friendsofscotland.gov.uk
  77. ^ Helen Liddell MP, (former) Secretary of State for Scotland - Scotland is a country of inventors and entrepreneurs and we have many excellent, dynamic companies. Press Release 2002-07-31 at www.scotlandoffice.gov.uk
  78. ^ Wendy Alexander MSP, Leader of the Labour Party in the Scottish Parliament - "Scotland is a country I love to the core of my being." Speech to Scottish Conference by Wendy Alexander at www.scottishlabour.org.uk
  79. ^ Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland, Report Number E97002, November 1997 - 14. However, since Scotland is a country of great diversity Third Statutory Review of Electoral Arrangements at www.lgbc-scotland.gov.uk
  80. ^ World Offshore Renewable Energy Report 2004-2008 - 5.3.3 Scotland is a country with potential to be at the centre of the worldwide tidal industry. Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform at www.berr.gov.uk
  81. ^ David Blunkett MP, (former) Home Secretary, Speech to TUC Conference 2004-11-10 - "in the country of Scotland who are pioneering the programme of getting people to move to Scotland" Speech to TUC Conference on Managed Migration at http://press.homeoffice.gov.uk
  82. ^ SECOND DIVISION, INNER HOUSE, COURT OF SESSION, XA39/03 - 9 "within Scotland" meant within the geographical limits of the country of Scotland OPINION OF THE COURT delivered by LORD JOHNSTON, 2003-12-02 at www.scotcourts.gov.uk
  83. ^ RENEWABLE ENERGY INQUIRY by ENTERPRISE AND CULTURE COMMITTEE, 2004-01-22. 3.5:"Scotland is a country which sells its scenery, as the basis for its largest single industry, tourism". Evidence from SCOTTISH NATURAL HERITAGE
  84. ^ Bertie Ahern, (former) Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland. ADDRESS TO THE SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT - WEDNESDAY 20 JUNE 2001 - "Scotland is a country rightly renowned for the distinguished historical contribution of its thinkers and scientists to the development of democracy and technological progress". Scottish Parliament. Parliamentary News Release at www.scottish.parliament.uk
  85. ^ Andrew Hardie, Baron Hardie, (former) Lord Advocate, - "In a small country like Scotland, the courts have not had sufficient cases in the area of private law to al