West Yorkshire

West Yorkshire is a within the  region of, that has a population of. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the.

West Yorkshire, which is landlocked, consists of five s (,, , and ) and shares borders with the counties of  , , ,  and.

was abolished in 1986, and so its districts (the metropolitan boroughs) are now effectively. However, the metropolitan county, which covers an area of 2,029 km², continues to exist in law, and as a geographic frame of reference.

West Yorkshire encompasses the, which is the most built-up and biggest within the  of.

Divisions and environs
West Yorkshire is divided into five local government districts; they are the, , , the and the. The county borders, , , and.

History
It was formed as a metropolitan county in 1974, by the, and corresponds roughly to the core of the  of  and the county boroughs of Bradford, Leeds, Wakefield, Dewsbury, Halifax and Huddersfield. The Wakefield district's industrial heritage is significantly different from most of the rest of the county in that coal-mining was a large employer whilst textiles was not a particularly large industry (except in, where the two industries were both important).

West Yorkshire Metropolitan County Council inherited the use of at, opened in 1898, from the  County Council in 1974. Since 1987 it has been the headquarters of Wakefield City Council.

It initially had a two-tier structure of local government with a strategic-level county council and five districts providing most services. In 1986, throughout England the metropolitan county councils were abolished. The functions of the county council were devolved to the boroughs; joint-boards covering fire, police and public transport; and to other special joint arrangements. Organisations such as and  continue to operate on this basis.

Although the county council was abolished, West Yorkshire continues to form a and  county with a  and  a.

Politics
In Parliament, all but two of West Yorkshire's M.P.s are. At local level, the councils are generally divided, apart from the Wakefield district, which has long been one of the safest Labour councils in the country.

There are currently plans for a system in West Yorkshire, but those for a  were rejected by the government in 2005.

Economy
This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of West Yorkshire at current basic prices published (pp.240-253) by Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling.

Historic environment

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Museums

 * ,
 * (opening 2008)
 * (Netherton)
 * Pennine Farm Museum,
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 * Tolson Museum,
 * West Yorkshire Folk Museum,
 * , West Bretton
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 * Tolson Museum,
 * West Yorkshire Folk Museum,
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Natural environment

 * , site of the tallest self-supporting structure in the UK (a TV mast)
 * , home of naturalist and the world's first
 * - wetland centre for birds
 * Seckar Woods LNR, a
 * New Ings Nature Reserve
 * - extensive wooded parkland on high ground with extensive views North over Wharfedale and South as far as the Peak District
 * - Leeds Country Way public footpath runs through the estate, beautiful landscaped gardens and home to Red Kites amongst many other birds

Waterways

 * , - both in the moors near