London is the largest city of England and the United Kingdom. It stands on the Thames River which leads into the North Sea. Greater London is governed by the Mayor of London and the London Assembly. London is considered to be one of the world's most important global cities and has been termed as the world's most powerful, most desirable, most influential, most visited, most expensive, innovative, sustainable, most investment friendly, and most popular for work city in the world. London exerts a considerable impact upon the arts, commerce, education, entertainment, fashion, finance, healthcare, media, professional services, research and development, tourism and transportation. London ranks 26 out of 300 major cities for economic performance. It is one of the largest financial centres. London is home of world-class institutions, such as, Imperial College London in science, technology, engineering and mathematics and the London School of Economics in economics, finance and business. In 2012, London became the first city to host three modern Summer Olympic Games. London has a diverse range of people and cultures, and more than 300 languages are spoken in the region. London's population was estimated at 8,908,081 people and it is the most populous of any city in the European Union. The population of the London commuter belt is 14,040,163 inhabitants in 2016. London contains four World Heritage Sites: the Tower of London; Kew Gardens; the Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey, St. Margaret's Church; the historic settlement in Greenwich where the Royal Observatory, Greenwich defines the Prime Meridian, 0° latitude, and Greenwich Mean Time. Other landmarks include Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Piccadilly Circus, St. Paul's Cathedral, Tower Bridge, Trafalgar Square, The Shard, British Museum, National Gallery, Natural History Museum, Tate Modern, British Library, and West End theatres. The London Underground is oldest underground railway network in the world.
