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UK Local Authority Administration : Wales Wales is subject to the administration of both the UK Government in Westminster and also the National Assembly for Wales in Cardiff. The UK Government retains responsibility for all primary legislation but the National Assembly has powers to make secondary legislation in a range of policy areas such as health, education, industry, agriculture, local government, environment, and culture. Wales is subdivided into 22 unitary authorities, which in turn are divided into electoral divisions and communities. Unitary Authorities: Following the 1994 Local Government (Wales) Act the 8 counties and 37 districts of Wales were replaced in April 1996 by 22 unitary authorities with responsibilities for all aspects of local government. 8 of the UAs (Bridgend; Cardiff; Merthyr Tydfil; Neath Port Talbot; Newport; Rhondda, Cynon, Taff; Torfaen; and Wrexham) have county borough status (reflecting their existence as large population centres), whilst the other 14 have county status (reflecting at least some aspect of rurality). These definitions do not however affect authority structures. Unitary authorities are built from electoral divisions. They are also divided into communities. Scotland Scotland is subject to the administration of both the UK Government in Westminster and also the Scottish Executive in Edinburgh. The UK Government has responsibility for issues such as constitutional matters, foreign policy and defence, whereas the remit of the Scottish Executive includes matters such as health, education and law. Council Areas : The 1994 Local Government (Scotland) Act led to the abolition of the existing structure of 9 regions and 53 districts, although the 3 island councils remained. Since April 1996 therefore Scotland has been divided into 32 units known as council areas, whose councils are unitary administrations with responsibility for all areas of local government. Council areas are built from electoral wards and are also divided into communities. Northern Ireland Northern Ireland is subject to the administration of both the UK Government in Westminster and also the Northern Ireland Executive in Belfast. The UK Government retains responsibility for a number of issues such as international relations, policing and justice. The Northern Ireland Executive however has powers in a number of areas such as health, education, industry, agriculture, environment, and culture. Northern Ireland is subdivided into 26 district council areas (although within Northern Ireland they are also known as 'local government districts' (LGDs)). These in turn are divided into electoral wards. District Council Areas : At the last reorganisation in October 1973 Northern Ireland's two tier administrative structure was replaced by one of 26 districts known as 'district council areas' (although within Northern Ireland they are also known as 'local government districts'). The district councils are unitary administrations responsible for all areas of local government, but their remit is more limited than that of local authorities in the rest of the UK. The six historic counties (Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Londonderry and Tyrone) are still referred to in common parlance but do not constitute a level of administration. District council areas are built from electoral wards.

England
England does not have its own devolved parliament and is thus entirely subject to the administration of the UK Government in Westminster. The subdivisions of England are depicted below. Note however that the diagram shows the geographic structure rather than the administrative reporting structure. In practice, neither metropolitan counties nor GORs are truly part of the administrative hierarchy, and electoral wards/divisions are simply the 'building blocks' from which higher units are constituted. Parishes on the other hand can have their own council, but have been isolated from the geographic structure as, unlike electoral wards/divisions, they are not found across the whole of England.

Greater London and the London Boroughs :
Greater London was established in 1965 as an administrative unit covering the London metropolis. It was not defined as a county but had a two-tier structure, with the lower tier being the London boroughs. Following the abolition of the Greater London Council (GLC) in 1986 the boroughs became single-tier authorities, but Greater London was still widely recognised, especially for statistical and mapping purposes. In 2000 however a two-tier structure was re-established when the new Greater London Authority adopted responsibility for a range of citywide policy areas. There are 32 actual boroughs, with a status similar to metropolitan districts, and also the City of London, which is a City Corporation and has a number of additional roles. Boroughs are subdivided into electoral wards.

Counties, Non-metropolitan Districts and Unitary Authorities :
In 1974 a two-tier administrative structure of (shire) counties and non-metropolitan districts was set up across the whole of England and Wales, except for the Isles of Scilly, Greater London and the six metropolitan counties. Council functions were divided according to the level at which they could be practised most efficiently. In consequence, counties took on functions including education, transport, strategic planning, fire services, consumer protection, refuse disposal, smallholdings, social services and libraries, whereas the districts had responsibility for local planning, housing, local highways, building, environmental health, refuse collection and cemeteries. Responsibility for recreation and cultural matters was divided between the two tiers. Following the Local Government Reorganisation in the 1990s major changes were implemented to create administrations most appropriate to the needs of the area concerned. The key feature of this change was the introduction of unitary authorities, single-tier administrations with responsibility for all areas of local government. Between 1995 and 1998 these were established in a number of areas across the country, especially in medium-sized urban areas, whilst other areas retained a two-tier structure. The resulting geography is shown on the adjacent map. There are currently 46 unitary authorities in England, and 34 shire counties split into 239 (non-metropolitan) districts. Note that this district total includes the Isles of Scilly, which has a unitary council but is considered as a district of the county of 'Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly' for coding purposes. London and the metropolitan counties retain their own structure. Counties, districts and unitary authorities are subdivided into electoral wards/divisions.

Metropolitan Counties and Districts :
In 1974 a new two-tier system of counties and districts was established across England and Wales. Six of the upper-tier units, all in England and representing heavily built-up areas (other than Greater London), were designated 'metropolitan counties' and were subdivided into 'metropolitan districts'. As with non-metropolitan areas the respective authorities covered all areas of local government, but the distribution of responsibilities was different to that of the county/district structure. In 1986 however the metropolitan county councils were abolished, although the county areas are still recognised, especially for statistical purposes. The 36 metropolitan district councils were left as single-tier authorities, a status retained to date, and accordingly have more powers than their non-metropolitan district equivalents.