He inherited his love of cycling from his father, who was an alpine mountain guide, and it was the local geography of Elidir Fawr and Holyhead mountain that helped hone his skills.

BBC: Sir David Brailsford: London 2012 cycling chief knighted

But geography was no obstacle to two well-connected local Christian Democrats who delighted their constituents by getting the town included in the fund's remit.

ECONOMIST: Italy

The biggest problem, though, is that any ideas for coping with sprawl have always run up against local politics, racial tensions, history and, not least, geography.

ECONOMIST: Urban sprawl

This is sensible, but geography does not follow political boundaries, and some basins cover several local government areas.

ECONOMIST: The political and economic geography of inundation

The local politicians are mainly from the right, business types keen to promote the region's virtues of geography and language.

ECONOMIST: France