Scotland particularly in relation to taxation, were devolved to the Scottish Parliament after the referendum, following cross-party talks in the Smith Commission. The mainland of Scotland comprises the northern third of the land mass of the island of Great Britain, which lies off the north-west coast of Continental Europe. The total area is , comparable to the size of the Czech Republic. Scotland's only land border is with England, and runs for between the basin of the River Tweed on the east coast and the Solway Firth in the west. The Atlantic Ocean borders the west coast and the North Sea
England–Wales border West and Chester, Shropshire, Herefordshire, and Gloucestershire in England. There are several places where the border runs along the centre of a lane or street, resulting in properties on one side of the street being in Wales and those on the other side being in England. Notable examples include Boundary Lane in Saltney and the main street of Llanymynech. Before and during the Roman occupation of Britain, all the native inhabitants of the island (other than the Pictish/Caledonian tribes of what is now northern Scotland—and also excepting the Lloegyr of greater south-east England) spoke Brythonic languages, a sub-family of the