North-South divide in the United Kingdom

In Great Britain, the term North–South divide refers to the economic and cultural differences between Southern England and the rest of Great Britain (Northern England, The Midlands, Wales and Scotland). The divide cuts through the English Midlands. Sometimes, the term is widened to include the whole United Kingdom, with Northern Ireland included as part of "the North".

In political terms, the South, and particularly the South East England (outside inner London) and East of England, is largely centre-right, and supportive of the Conservative Party, while the Greater North (particularly the towns and cities) is generally more supportive of the Labour Party as well as, in Scotland, the SNP. Support for the Liberal Democrats, and for many of the smaller parties, is generally more equally spread out. There is some criticism of this analysis in the West Country which, until the May 2015 UK general election, had consistently provided a solid base for the Liberal Democrats, and also in places (particularly parts of Bristol, Devon, and Cornwall) which suffer from many of the same economic problems as the North.

The North-South divide is not an exact line, but one that can involve many stereotypes, presumptions and other impressions of the surrounding region relative to other regions.

The existence of the North-South divide is fiercely contested. Some sources claim it exists but also that it is even expanding. For example, a report in 2001 found that North East England, North West England and Scotland had poorer health levels than South.

...
Wikipedia