An important city and metropolitan borough residing within the county of West Yorkshire, Leeds is second-only to London as a city for business, commerce, economy and financial services.
The region's network of roads and public transportation is very much centred around Leeds, being maintained by the city and the West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive organisation. Both the M1 and M62 motorways are to be found intersecting the southern side of the city, while the A1(M) lies to the east. There is also an urban motorway network, with the M621 linking the city centre, along with both Inner and Outer ring roads.
Many significant landmarks live within the city, such as Leeds Town Hall and the Corn Exchange, as well as the City Museum, which graces the Millennium Square and was founded in 1819, being closed in the mid-1960s and reopened again in 2008, following a National Lottery heritage grant of almost £20 million. On the skyline of the city, two white buildings are clearly visible, namely the Civic Hall and the university's Parkinson building.
There are a number of tourism offices throughout Leeds, with the principal outlet being located within the city's railway station, just off Princes Square and the Wharf Approach.
Sited nearby Leeds Town Hall and the Central Library, this award-winning tourist centre provides a wide range of useful leaflets and souvenirs.
Residing on the outskirts of Leeds, Otley is a particularly scenic town and the Otley Tourist Information Centre serves as a useful place to visit if you are planning to explore this spot, with maps being available here.
Leeds University is one of the premier universities in the north of England. With numerous buildings, theatres, lecture halls and excellent facilities, the campus is home to a large student base now numbering in excess of 30,000. The university is situated in the Hyde Park area, lying on the north-western side of the city centre and incorporating St. Georges Park.
As in any large city, it is advisable to always maintain an awareness of your surroundings and not look like a tourist when visiting Leeds. Although crime levels in West Yorkshire are fairly low, try to look like you know where you are going and stay alert in crowded places.
The cosmopolitan city of Leeds is home to many different cultures and religious beliefs, with most religions having some kind of a presence in West Yorkshire. Located on Cookridge Street and just across from the Millennium Square, Leeds Cathedral (the Cathedral Church of St. Anne) serves as the city's Roman Catholic Diocese, as well as the seat of the bishop. Other prominent places of worship in the city include the Parish Church on Kirkgate and St. George's Church on Great George Street, while the ruins of outlying Kirkstall Abbey offer an insight into the area's religious past and monastic heritage.
Most pharmacies in Leeds city centre open from 09:00 until around 18:00, while supermarkets often come with their very own in-store chemists. Drugstores will usually open until 18:00, although some may stay open until later, and these usually have pharmacy counters for dispensing prescriptions and medicines. Boots the Chemist is the biggest and most familiar chain and features no less than eight separate outlets in the city, including those based at the Railway Station on Aire Street, Albion Arcade and Merrion Street.
Tipping in Leeds is fairly discretionary, with most taxi drivers usually being given a 10% gratuity or thereabouts, although some passengers simply choose to round up the fare to the nearest pound or two. However, it should be noted that tipping taxi cabs is by no means essential.
Most of the principal dining establishments in the city tend to include service charges and these are always clearly stated on the menus, otherwise it is usual to tip around 10% in recognition of prompt and courteous service. Hotel staff, such as porters, happily accept a tip of one or two pounds. Generally, no other public service workers in the city expect to be tipped.
Public buildings and public transport in Leeds restrict smoking and this is usually clearly indicated by prominent no-smoking signs. From July 2007, it is no longer possible to smoke inside all restaurants, public houses and bars, although some now cater for smokers by providing outdoor areas during the summer months, while the most family friendly pubs may even restrict smoking in their beer gardens.
Smoking in Leeds, and England as a whole, is no longer as fashionable as it once was, so it is always worth exercising discretion and sensitivity when selecting a place in which to smoke. The best advice would be not to smoke in enclosed spaces, unless you are confident that you are allowed and that those around you won't have any objections.
Much business is done over the dinner table in Leeds and business lunches are often held at restaurants within the city centre. The most notable of the city's dining establishments will come with a comprehensive wine list, while tables should be booked in advance if possible, particularly on Friday and Saturday nights. Alternatively, business dinners may well be conducted at home and these tend to be fairly informal occasions.
Leeds has an enormous selection of public houses, often with views of the surrounding countryside. Most pubs and wine bars are friendly places - if there is a good mix of people you can be sure that it is a good pub, otherwise, just close the door and head to another nearby.


The 'kerb appeal' of Volkswagen's exhilarating Scirocco sports coupé has never been in doubt: the distinctive silhouette and wide, low stance of this third generation model – revealed just last year – continue to turn heads.
Now Volkswagen is boosting the Scirocco's desirability yet further with the UK launch of two special edition versions – both available to order in dealers now – that add not only extra style but also enhance the four-seat coupé's already-strong value proposition.
The debut of two new Scirocco Black Edition models: the Scirocco GT Black Edition and Scirocco R-Line Black Edition, sees the addition as standard of black painted alloy wheels, a black painted contrast roof, door mirrors and rear spoiler, and 90% tinted rear windows. Together, they significantly enrich the visual appeal of this already dynamic-looking coupé.
The Scirocco GT Black Edition boasts 18-inch Black Lisbon alloy wheels, while the R-Line Black Edition benefits from arch-filling 19-inch Black Lugano alloy wheels. Priced from £23,135 (RRP OTR) for the GT Scirocco Black Edition 1.4-litre TSI BlueMotion Technology – a premium of £550 over the equivalent GT and R-Line trims – the new models offer great value for money, too. As an example, the 18-inch Lisbon alloy wheels alone would otherwise be a £610 option on the GT trim, while the cars' 90% tinted windows are a £70 option.
The third generation Scirocco made its global public debut at the Geneva Motor Show in March 2014 – 40 years after the original debuted – and comes with a range of advanced engines that offer up to 280 PS yet also promise both impressive performance and fuel efficiency.
Styling highlights include eye-catching headlight and LED tail light designs, a front bumper featuring aerodynamic 'blades' in the outer section and, inside, a dashboard containing an auxiliary instrument cluster above the centre console consisting of chronometer, charge pressure and oil temperature gauges.
Under the Scirocco's purposeful bonnet lies one of six turbocharged direct-injection petrol or diesel engines, all of which meet EU6 emissions standards and return between 67.3 and 35.3 mpg. Every model in the range except the R feature BlueMotion Technology additions, meaning they come as standard with Stop/Start and brake energy recuperation systems.
In new GT Black Edition and R-Line Black Edition guise the petrol range comprises a 1.4-litre 125 PS or a 2.0-litre 180 PS unit while two diesel engines, both 2.0-litre, offer either 150 PS or 184 PS. The 1.4-litre TSI comes with a six-speed manual gearbox, while all other engines are fitted with a standard six-speed manual gearbox or the option of a six-speed DSG gearbox.
Performance over the 0-62 mph sprint ranges from 9.3 seconds to 5.5 seconds, depending on engine and transmission choice, while top speeds, where legal, range from 126 mph to 155 mph (limited).
Standard equipment across the entire Scirocco range includes the Composition Media system with 6.5-inch colour touch-screen, Bluetooth telephone and audio connection, DAB digital radio receiver, MDI (Multi Device Interface) via USB connection, SD card reader and single CD player along with air conditioning; automatic headlights and wipers; an auto-dimming rear view mirror; height-adjustable sports seats and a multifunction leather-covered steering wheel (with paddleshifts on DSG models).
The Scirocco GT features, in addition to the Composition Media system, Discover Navigation offering branded points of interest, dynamic navigation based on TMC+, preloaded European navigation data and Fast, Short and Eco route options as well as 2Zone climate control; dark-tinted rear windows; front fog lights; front and rear parking sensors; a black roof lining; 'chequered flag' dash inserts and aluminium-look pedals and cloth and part Alcantara-trimmed upholstery.
The R-Line model comes with R-Line-specific bumpers and side skirts; R-Line scuff plates; an R-Line-specific steering wheel, handbrake and gear lever; 'carbon-look' dash inserts; and heated, electrically adjustable 'Vienna' leather sports seats.
Top-of-the-range Scirocco R models add a host of sporting and luxury features including Dynamic Chassis Control (DCC); Unique 'R' sports suspension lowered by around 10 mm; Bi-xenon headlights with dynamic curve lighting, automatic range adjustment, static cornering function and headlight washers; black brake calipers with 'R' logo; LED daytime running lights set into the front bumper (in lieu of front fog lights); a bespoke 'R' styling pack; Gloss Black decorative interior trim inserts; leather trimmed three-spoke multifunction steering wheel Vienna leather upholstery and front sports seats with embossed 'R' logo.


Write-up: Initial and follow up information has been received from a nurse and manufacturer pregnancy registry concerning a 23 year old black female patient with one previous pregnancy who on 08-DEC-2006 was vaccinated with a dose of Gardasil. On 14-DEC-2006 a pregnancy test was positive. The patient''s LMP was late November 2006. On 07-MAY-2007 the nurse reported that the patient had not been to the office since the original prenatal appointment on 12-FEB-2007. She had cancelled 3 appointments on 05-March-2007, 12-MAR-2007 and 19-MAR-2007. Follow up information from the nurse indicated that on 16-NOV-2006 patient had her last menstrual period and her estimated delivery date 20-AUG-2007. She called back on 07-MAY-2007 but did not give any information about the miscarriage. On 24-APR-2007 patient reported that she had miscarried. No date was identified when the patient miscarried. Unspecified medical attention was sought. The outcome was unknown. Upon internal review, miscarriage was considered an other important medical event. Additional information has been requested.