England - Economic sectors

England - Economic sectors

England is one of the three regions which together with Wales and Scotland form the United Kingdom.

Introduction

England covers "only" 57% of the area of the island of Great Britain, but concentrates 85% of its inhabitants. The average population density exceeds 370 inhabitants per km2. This is linked above all to the history and extent of the industrial revolution which caused urbanization. The bases of this industrialization have largely disappeared: coal mining, part of the metallurgy (steel industry, shipyards) and textiles. Other branches (electrical constructions, chemistry) replaced the old industries, but especially the services. The London region has become the wealthiest and most active region in the United Kingdom. Very representative of the current economic organization, it has only 10% of its workforce in industry.
The main cities of England are: Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, Sheffield, Leeds.

Agriculture

The nature of the soil and the favorable climatic conditions make England the first agricultural region of the United Kingdom. The companies are highly mechanized. Farmers and owners apply methods of crop rotation and livestock selection, as agriculture and livestock are associated. The cultivation of cereals, associated with that of sugar beet and potatoes, dominates in the rich lands of the South and West; the East and the Center add forage crops (Lancashire, Yorkshire, Fens). Fruit and vegetable crops are grown in Kent, while greenhouse crops are Sussex's specialty. Hop cultivation is practiced in Kent and Worcestershire. The Midlands, Weald and Somerset are all about cattle farming, while the Cotswolds, Chilterns and Downs hills are sheep domain. However, the agricultural sector represents only a small part of England's income, the primacy remains with industry.

Industry

The industry is concentrated in the areas, already specialized in coal mining and in the textile industry but in the process of conversion. Northumberland-Durham and East Yorkshire Midlands supply nearly two thirds of UK production. The steel industry produces special steels in Sheffield, while the heavy metallurgy is in Newcastle; the wool industry is still active in Leeds and Bradford. To the west, Cumberland has found an outlet at the Barrow-in-Furness steel mills, which process the imported ore. The severity of the crisis in Lancashire, almost ruined by the regression of the cotton industry, led to industrial diversification: chemical industries, oil refineries, automotive assembly lines were created in Liverpool and Manchester. To the south, the Midlands are the seat of transformation metallurgy: cars, machinery, weapons, various materials (Birmingham, Coventry). The conversion policy is accompanied by a remodeling of the urban landscape
For several decades, the industry has established itself right in the heart of green England, in the center of the London region. Using electricity and few raw materials, but employing a skilled workforce, removed from the London region, he dedicated himself to the most dynamic activities: automotive in Oxford, electronics in Cambridge. The specificity of London, the largest of the European metropolises, lies in the importance of the tertiary sector. Its port has lost much of its business to Tilbury, downstream from the capital, with more modern facilities.