Local government in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is divided into 11 districts for local government purposes. In Northern Ireland, local councils do not carry out the same range of functions as those in the rest of the United Kingdom; for example they have no responsibility for education, road-building or housing. Their functions include planning, waste and recycling services, leisure and community services, building control and local economic and cultural development. The collection of rates is handled centrally by the Land and Property Services agency of the Northern Ireland Executive.
Local Government Districts
| District | Council | Meeting place | Population | № on map |
| Antrim and Newtownabbey | Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council | Newtownabbey and Antrim | 3 | |
| Ards and North Down | Ards and North Down Borough Council | Bangor | 2 | |
| Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon | Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council | Craigavon | 6 | |
| Belfast | Belfast City Council | Belfast | 1 | |
| Causeway Coast and Glens | Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council | Coleraine | 8 | |
| Derry and Strabane | Derry City and Strabane District Council | Derry | 10 | |
| Fermanagh and Omagh | Fermanagh and Omagh District Council | Omagh and Enniskillen | 11 | |
| Lisburn and Castlereagh | Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council | Lisburn | 4 | |
| Mid and East Antrim | Mid and East Antrim Borough Council | Ballymena | 7 | |
| Mid Ulster | Mid Ulster District Council | Dungannon | 9 | |
| Newry, Mourne and Down | Newry, Mourne and Down District Council | Downpatrick and Newry | 5 |
Composition of District Councils
Based on the 2019 Northern Ireland local elections.| District | DUP | SF | UUP | SDLP | APNI | GP | TUV | PBP | PUP | Aontú | CCLA | Ind | Total |
| Antrim and Newtownabbey | 14 | 5 | 9 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 40 | ||||||
| Ards and North Down | 14 | 8 | 1 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 40 | |||||
| 11 | 10 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 41 | |||||||
| Belfast | 15 | 18 | 2 | 6 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 60 | ||||
| Causeway Coast and Glens | 14 | 9 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 40 | |||||
| Derry City and Strabane | 7 | 11 | 2 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 40 | ||||
| Fermanagh and Omagh | 5 | 15 | 9 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 40 | |||||
| Lisburn and Castlereagh | 15 | 2 | 11 | 2 | 9 | 1 | 40 | ||||||
| Mid and East Antrim | 15 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 40 | |||||
| Mid-Ulster | 9 | 17 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 40 | ||||||
| Newry, Mourne and Down | 3 | 16 | 4 | 11 | 2 | 5 | 41 | ||||||
| Total | 122 | 105 | 74 | 56 | 53 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 27 | 462 |
Last updated 25 July 2020
History
The current pattern of 11 local government districts was established on 1 April 2015, as a result of the reform process that started in 2005.The previous pattern of local government in Northern Ireland, with 26 councils, was established in 1973 by the Local Government Act 1971 and the Local Government Act 1972 to replace the previous system established by the Local Government Act 1898. The system was based on the recommendations of the Macrory Report, of June 1970, which presupposed the continued existence of the Government of Northern Ireland to act as a regional-level authority.
From 1921 to 1973, Northern Ireland was divided into six administrative counties and two county boroughs. The counties and county boroughs continue to exist for the purposes of lieutenancy and shrievalty. This system, with the abolition of rural districts, remains the model for local government in the Republic of Ireland.
Elections
Councillors are elected for a four-year term of office under the single transferable vote system. Elections were last held on 2 May 2019. To qualify for election, a councillor candidate must be:- at least 18 years of age, and
- a Commonwealth of Nations or European Union citizen
- be a local elector for the district, or
- have, during the whole of the 12-month period prior to the election, either owned or occupied land in the district, or else resided or worked in the district
Combinations
Eurostat NUTS level 3
In the Eurostat Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics, Northern Ireland is divided into five parts at level 3| Name | Area | Population | % of population | ||
| UKN01 | Belfast | 280,962 | 15.5 | ||
| UKN02 | Outer Belfast | Carrickfergus, Castlereagh, Lisburn, Newtownabbey, North Down | 391,560 | 21.6 | |
| UKN03 | East | Antrim, Ards, Ballymena, Banbridge, Craigavon, Down, Larne | 439,682 | 24.3 | |
| UKN04 | North | Ballymoney, Coleraine, Derry, Limavady, Moyle, Strabane | 288,138 | 15.9 | |
| UKN05 | West and South | Armagh, Cookstown, Dungannon, Fermanagh, Magherafelt, Newry and Mourne, Omagh | 411,893 | 22.7 |
Former Education and Library Boards
There were five education and library boards in Northern Ireland.As part of the Review of Public Administration process, the library functions of the ELBs were taken over by a new body, the Northern Ireland Library Authority in April 2009.
The education and skills functions were centralised into a single Education Authority for Northern Ireland in April 2015.
The boards were as follows:
| Name | Area | ||
| 1. | Belfast | ||
| 2. | North Eastern | Antrim, Ballymena, Ballymoney, Carrickfergus, Coleraine, Larne, Magherafelt, Moyle, Newtownabbey | |
| 3. | South Eastern | Ards, Castlereagh, Down, Lisburn and North Down | |
| 4. | Southern | Armagh, Banbridge, Cookstown, Craigavon, Dungannon and South Tyrone, Newry and Mourne | |
| 5. | Western | Derry, Fermanagh, Limavady, Omagh, Strabane |
Former Health and Social Services Boards
There were four health and social services boards which were replaced by a single Health and Social Care Board in April 2009.The former health and social services boards were as follows:
| Name | Area | ||
| 1. | Eastern | Ards, Belfast, Castlereagh, Down, Lisburn, North Down | |
| 2. | Northern | Antrim, Ballymena, Ballymoney, Carrickfergus, Coleraine, Cookstown, Larne, Magherafelt, Moyle, Newtownabbey | |
| 3. | Southern | Armagh, Banbridge, Craigavon, Dungannon and South Tyrone, Newry and Mourne | |
| 4. | Western | Derry, Fermanagh, Limavady, Omagh, Strabane |