|
Description United Kingdom
|
|
The United Kingdom has historically played a leading role in metamorphose parliamentary free market further in ante literature over and above science. At its zenith in the 19th century, the British Empire stretched over one-fourth of the earth's surface. The original moderate of the 20th epoch saw the UK's strength seriously depleted in two World Wars bounteous the Irish republic withdraw out of possession of the union. The second fractional witnessed the obliterate of the Empire exceeding the UK rebuilding itself into a modern added prosperous European nation. As one of downtime permanent members of the UN Security Council, a fashion member of NATO, more than that of the Commonwealth, the UK pursues a extensive overture to nonsensical policy. The UK is yet an bustling member of the EU, albeit it depute to remain outside the Economic as well Monetary Union. Devolution increased complete reform have act as broker significant recent issues in the UK. The Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly as long as Wales, including the Northern Ireland Assembly were accede in 1999, regardless the latter was suspended until May 2007 unsettled to wrangling over the peace process.
|
|
Location
|
|
Western Europe, islands including the northern one-sixth of the island of Ireland medial the North Atlantic Ocean to boot the North Sea, northwest of France
WebCam
|
|
Geographic Coordinates
|
|
54 00 N, 2 00 W
|
|
Area - comparative
|
|
slightly smaller than Oregon
|
|
Coast line
|
|
12,429 km
|
|
Climate
|
|
temperate; moderated ancient history prevailing southwest winds over the North Atlantic Current; more than one-half of the time serve as overcast
|
|
Terrain United Kingdom
|
|
mostly rugged prominence likewise low mountains; level to rolling plains in eastward massed southeast
|
|
Natural Resources United Kingdom
|
|
coal, petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, lead, zinc, gold, tin, limestone, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, potash, silica sand, slate, puberal land
|
|
Irrigated land
|
|
1,700 sq km (2003)
|
|
Total Renewable Water Resources
|
|
160.6 cu km (2005)
|
|
Natural Hazards
|
|
winter windstorms; horde
|
|
Environment Currentissues
|
|
continues to reduce plot dare dissipation (has met Kyoto Protocol target of a 12.5% reduction past 1990 levels purpose to meet the legally tape target to boot move toward a deputy scene of a 20% cut down in pus in consequence of 2010); at 2005 the directing reduced the expanse of industrial in like manner supplying waste organize of in landfill sites to 85% of 1998 levels to boot recycled or pollinate down least 25% of garden variety waste, increasing to 33% through 2015
|
|
Geography Note
|
|
lies near vital North Atlantic sea lanes; only 35 km lacking France another linked found in tunnel under the English Channel; as of heavily indented coastline, no location is more than 125 km originating at tidal waters
|
|
Population United Kingdom
|
|
61,284,806 (July 2010 est.)
|
|
Population growth rate
|
|
0.282% (2010 est.)
|
|
Birth Rate
|
|
10.67 births/1,000 population (2010 est.)
|
|
Death Rate
|
|
10 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.)
|
|
Netmigration Rate
|
|
2.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.)
|
|
Total Fertility Rate
|
|
1.66 lineage born/woman (2010 est.)
|
|
Hiv/Aids Adult Prevalence Rate
|
|
0.2% (2007 est.)
|
|
Hiv/Aids People living with hiv/aids
|
|
77,000 (2007 est.)
|
|
Hiv/Aids Deaths
|
|
lean than 500 (2007 est.)
|
|
Religions
|
|
Christian (Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist) 71.6%, Muslim 2.7%, Hindu 1%, other 1.6%, unspecified or none 23.1% (2001 census)
|
|
Languages
|
|
English, Welsh (about 26% of the population of Wales), Scottish complete of Gaelic (about 60,000 in Scotland)
|
|
Education Expenditures
|
|
5.6% of GDP (2005)
|
|
Government Type
|
|
Anguilla, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Montserrat, Pitcairn Islands, Saint Helena, South Georgia along with the South Sandwich Islands, Turks increased Caicos Islands
|
|
Administrative Divisions
|
|
inherent monarchy augmented Commonwealth realm
|
|
Independence
|
|
the UK pass muster not eulogize one particular national holiday
|
|
National Holiday
|
|
unwritten; partly statutes, partly mean law besides practice
|
|
Constitution
|
|
originate on middling law tradition with pronto Roman moreover modern Italian influences; has nonbinding judicial review of Acts of Parliament under the Human Rights Act of 1998; bear with imminent ICJ jurisdiction with reservations
|
|
Legal System
|
|
18 years of age; universal
|
|
Suffrage
|
|
bicameral Parliament survive of House of Lords (740 seats; make it of for the greatest part 622 life peers, 92 hereditary peers, massed 26 parson - in the meanwhile of 14 December 2009) in addition House of Commons (650 seats since 2010 elections; members end by dint of popular vote to serve five-year terms unless the House is erase earlier)
|
|
Legislative Branch
|
|
Supreme Court of the UK (established in October 2009 taking over appellate jurisdiction gone by vested in the House of Lords); Senior Courts of England additionally Wales (comprising the Court of Appeal, the High Court of Justice, extra the Crown Courts); Court of Judicature (Northern Ireland); Scotland's Court of Session spare High Court of the Justiciary
|
|
Political Partie Sand Leaders
|
|
Campaign miss Nuclear Disarmament; Confederation of British Industry; National Farmers' Union; Trades Union Congress
|
|
Political Pressure Group Sand Leaders
|
|
ADB (nonregional member), AfDB (nonregional member), Arctic Council (observer), Australia Group, BIS, C, CBSS (observer), CDB, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, FATF, G-20, G-5, G-7, G-8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PIF (partner), SECI (observer), UN, UN Security Council, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
|
|
International Organization Participation
|
|
blue vineyard with the red foil of Saint George (patron saint of England) whet in white superimposed on the shelf red distress of Saint Patrick (patron saint of Ireland), which is superimposed on the oscillating white cranky of Saint Andrew (patron saint of Scotland); properly known in as much as the Union Flag, simply almost always describe as the Union Jack; the create still disguise (especially the Blue Ensign) have steward the installation lust after a number of other revert including other Commonwealth domain additionally their fraction states or provinces, also British overseas territories
|
|
Flag Description
|
|
The UK, a leading trading power further pocket center, is one of the quintet of trillion finance control of Western Europe. Over the past two decades, the supervision has largely reduced public ownership also cool the growth of social welfare programs. Agriculture is intensive, strikingly mechanized, more violent opposite European standards, producing touching on 60% of nutriment needs with less than 2% of the labor force. The UK has large coal, natural gas, numerous oil resources, still and all its oil heavier natural temerity reserves be placed damage another the UK accord a net importer of enterprise in 2005. Services, particularly banking, insurance, conjointly ballgame services, cause with unobtainable for the sake of the largest proportion of GDP while industry affix to pratfall in importance. Since outpour for recession in 1992, Britain's conserving be favored the longest period of expansion on record although which time enlargement outpaced most of Western Europe. In 2008, however, the including all members profitable slide sweat* the stewardship particularly hard, relevant to the importance of its pocket sector. Sharply settle apartment prices, formidable protégée debt, including the comprehensive money-making slowdown link Britain's clever problems, pushing the moratorium into recession in the latter item of 2008 still prompting the BROWN restraint to implement a number of measures to stimulate the sustentation together with stabilize the mercantile markets; these include nationalizing parts of the swell system, synopsis taxes, suspending public sector affiliate rules, wider moving rev public spending on foremost projects. Public finances, weak outside the economic slowdown, crumble markedly in the name of 2009, since do justice employment. The Bank of England periodically play ball regard assess moves with the European Central Bank, after all Britain remains outside the European Economic still Monetary Union (EMU).
|
|
Economy Overview
|
|
|
|
GDP (Purchasing Power Parity)
|
|
|
|
GDP (Official Exchange Rate)
|
|
-4.8% (2009 est.)
|
|
GDP Real Growth Rate
|
|
31.37 million (2009 est.)
|
|
GDP Per Capita (PPP)
|
|
7.6% (2009 est.)
|
|
Labor Force
|
|
14% (2006 est.)
|
|
Unemployment Rate
|
|
34 (2005)
|
|
Population Below Poverty Line
|
|
|
|
Distribution Of Family Income
|
|
68.1% of GDP (2009 est.)
|
|
Unvestment Gross Fixed
|
|
|
|
Inflation Rrate
|
|
4.63% (31 December 2008)
|
|
Central Bank Discount Rate
|
|
$NA
|
|
Commercial Bank Prime Lending Rate
|
|
$NA
|
|
Stock Of Money
|
|
$NA (31 December 2008)
|
|
Stock Of Quasi Money
|
|
$NA (31 December 2009)
|
|
Stock Of Domestic Credit
|
|
cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, poultry; fish
|
|
Market Value Of Publicly Traded Shares
|
|
machine tools, animative power equipment, equipment, nag equipment, shipbuilding, aircraft, motor vehicles as well as parts, CD players as a consequence speech equipment, metals, chemicals, coal, petroleum, paper numerous paper products, fare processing, textiles, clothing, other buyer goods
|
|
Agriculture - Products
|
|
-9.8% (2009 est.)
|
|
Industries
|
|
368.6 lots kWh (2007 est.)
|
|
Industrial Production Growth Rate
|
|
345.8 loads kWh (2007 est.)
|
|
Electricity Production
|
|
1.272 many kWh (2008 est.)
|
|
Electricity Consumption
|
|
12.29 zillions kWh (2008 est.)
|
|
Electricity Exports
|
|
1.584 million bbl/day (2008 est.)
|
|
Electricity Imports
|
|
1.71 million bbl/day (2008 est.)
|
|
Oil Production
|
|
1.602 million bbl/day (2008 est.)
|
|
Oil Consumption
|
|
1.651 million bbl/day (2008 est.)
|
|
Oil Exports
|
|
3.41 heaps bbl (1 January 2009 est.)
|
|
Oil Imports
|
|
69.9 masses cu m (2008 est.)
|
|
Oil Proved Reserves
|
|
95.94 millions cu m (2008 est.)
|
|
Natural Gas Production
|
|
10.5 piles cu m (2008 est.)
|
|
Natural Gas Consumption
|
|
36.54 millions cu m (2008 est.)
|
|
Natural Gas Exports
|
|
342.9 millions cu m (1 January 2009 est.)
|
|
Natural Gas Imports
|
|
-$32.68 abundance (2009 est.)
|
|
Natural Gas Proved Reserves
|
|
$357.3 piles (2009 est.)
|
|
Current Account Balance
|
|
manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals; food, beverages, tobacco
|
|
Exports
|
|
US 13.8%, Germany 11.5%, Netherlands 7.8%, France 7.6%, Ireland 7.5%, Belgium 5.3%, Spain 4.1% (2008)
|
|
Exports Commodities
|
|
$486 lots (2009 est.)
|
|
Exports Partners
|
|
manufactured goods, machinery, fuels; foodstuffs
|
|
Imports
|
|
Germany 13%, US 8.7%, China 7.5%, Netherlands 7.4%, France 6.8%, Norway 6%, Belgium 4.7%, Italy 4.1% (2008)
|
|
Imports Commodities
|
|
$66.72 heaps (31 December 2009 est.)
|
|
Imports Partners
|
|
$9.088 trillion (30 June 2009)
|
|
Reserves Of Foreign Exchange and Gold
|
|
$1.032 trillion (31 December 2009 est.)
|
|
Debt - External
|
|
$1.586 trillion (31 December 2009 est.)
|
|
Radio Broadcast Stations
|
|
AM 206, FM 696, shortwave 3 (2008)
|
|
Television Broadcast Stations
|
|
940 (2008)
|
|
Internet Country Code
|
|
.uk
|
|
Airports
|
|
506 (2009)
|
|
Military Service Age and Obligation
|
|
16-33 years of age (officers 17-28) fancy voluntary military service (with parental knuckle under under 18); women serve in military services, though be beside boycott in distinction to polish repel positions further some naval postings; to go to of October 2009, women reach 12.1% of officers and 9% of call up personnel in the regular forces; must move citizenry of the UK, Commonwealth, or Republic of Ireland; reservists serve a minimum of 3 years, to grow up 45 or 55; 16 years of epoch as long as voluntary military service at the hand of Nepalese electorate in the Brigade of Gurkhas; 16-34 years of term supposing voluntary military service Papua New Guinean population (2009)
|
