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The United Kingdom and Ireland

Ireland Administrative Division Map

For administrative purposes, Ireland is divided into 26 countie, and 5 county boroughs, which are coextensive with the cities of Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick, and Waterford. Dáil constituencies are required by statute to follow county boundaries, as far as possible. Hence counties with greater populations have multiple constituencies (e.g. Limerick East/West) and some constituencies consist of more than one county (e.g. Sligo-North Leitrim), but by and large, the actual county boundaries are not crossed.

The following counties are in Ireland (Enumerated according to possition on the map): Republic of Ireland 1. Dublin 2. Wicklow 3. Wexford 4. Carlow 5. Kildare 6. Meath 7. Louth 8. Monaghan 9. Cavan 10. Longford 11. Westmeath 12. Offaly 13. Laois 14. Kilkenny 15. Waterford 16. Cork 17. Kerry 18. Limerick 19. Tipperary 20. Clare 21. Galway 22. Mayo 23. Roscommon 24. Sligo 25. Leitrim 26. Donegal Northern Ireland 1. Fermanagh 2. Tyrone 3. Londonderry 4. Antrim 5. Down 6. Armagh

The capital and largest city is Dublin, with a population of 1,186,821 (2006 est.). Cork is the second largest city and a major port, with a population of 361,766 (without Cork City). Other cities and towns, important primarily as trading centres for produce, include Limerick with a population of 131,303 (2006 est.), and Waterford with a population of 107,961 (2006 est.).

Head of State

Head of Government

Ireland is a parliamentary democracy. Its law is based on common law and legislation enacted by Parliament under the Constitution. Regulations of the European Communities have the force of law in Ireland. The Constitution of Ireland sets out the form of government and defines the powers and functions of the President, both Houses of the Oireachtas (National Parliament) and the Government. It also defines the structure and powers of the Courts and outlines the fundamental rights of citizens. The President is the Head of State, and can still carry out certain constitutional powers and functions aided by the Council of State, and advisory body. Where there is more than one candidate for the office, the people elect the President by direct vote, he or she can be in power for a period of seven years and can be re-elected only once after that.

There are fifteen Government Departments each headed by a Minister who collectively form the Government. Executive power is exercised by or on the authority of the Government, which is responsible to the Dáil (House of Representatives). The Head of the Government is the Taoiseach (Prime Minister) who is appointed by the president and presides over a Cabinet of Ministers while the Tánaiste is the Deputy Prime Minister. There are two Houses of Parliament, known as Dáil Éireann (House of Representatives) and Seanad Éireann (Senate). The Houses of the Oireachtas sit in Leinster House in Dublin, an eighteenth century ducal palace. The directly-elected Dáil is by far the most powerful branch of the Oireachtas.