This is a list of non-metropolitan counties of England by population. It includes those non-metropolitan counties (also known as shire counties) with a two-tier county council structure and does not include metropolitan counties or unitary authorities. In cases where a unitary authority has been detached from a shire county the population of the unitary authority is excluded. For example, Luton is excluded from the population figure for Bedfordshire. The figures are mid-year estimates for 2004 from the Office for National Statistics[HTTP ]. Source: [wikipedia: list of non-metropolitan counties of england by population]