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PROFILE OFFICIAL NAME:
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Geography
Area: 243,000 sq. km. (93,000 sq. mi.); slightly smaller than Oregon.
Cities: Capital--London (metropolitan pop. about 7.56 million). Other cities--Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds, Sheffield, Liverpool, Bradford, Manchester, Edinburgh, Bristol, Belfast.
Terrain: 30% arable, 50% meadow and pasture,
12% waste or urban, 7% forested, 1% inland water.
Land use: 25% arable, 46% meadows and pastures, 10% forests and woodland, 19% other.
Climate: Generally mild and temperate; weather is subject to frequent changes but to few extremes of temperature.
People
Nationality: Noun--Briton(s). Adjective--British.
Population (2008 est.): 60.975 million.
Annual population growth rate (2008 est.): 0.42%.
Major ethnic groups: British, Irish, West Indian,
South Asian.
Major religions: Church of England (Anglican), Roman Catholic, Church of Scotland (Presbyterian), Muslim.
Major languages: English, Welsh, Irish Gaelic, Scottish Gaelic.
Education: Years compulsory--12. Attendance--nearly 100%. Literacy--99%.
Health: Infant mortality rate (2008 est.)--5/1,000. Life expectancy (2008 est.)--males 77.2 yrs.; females 81.5 yrs.; total 79.4 years.
Work force (2008, 31.40 million): Services--80.8%; industry--17.6%;
agriculture--1.5%.
Government
Type: Constitutional monarchy.
Constitution: Unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice.
Branches: Executive--monarch (head of state), prime minister (head of government), cabinet. Legislative--bicameral Parliament: House of Commons, House of Lords; Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly, and Northern Ireland Assembly. Judicial--magistrates' courts, county courts, high courts, appellate courts, House of Lords.
Subdivisions:
Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland (municipalities, counties, and parliamentary constituencies).
Political
parties: Great Britain--Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrats; also,
in Scotland--Scottish National Party. Wales--Plaid Cymru (Party of
Wales). Northern Ireland--Ulster Unionist Party, Social Democratic and
Labour Party, Democratic Unionist Party, Sinn Fein, Alliance Party, and
other smaller parties.
Suffrage: British subjects and citizens of other Commonwealth countries and the Irish Republic resident in the U.K., at 18.
Economy
GDP (at current market prices, 2008 est.): $1.824 trillion.
Annual growth rate (2008 est.): 0.7%.
Per capita GDP (2008 est.): $31,400.
Natural resources: Coal, oil, natural gas, tin, limestone, iron ore, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, lead, silica.
Agriculture (1% of GDP): Products--cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables,
cattle, sheep, poultry, fish.
Industry: Types--steel,
heavy engineering and metal manufacturing, textiles, motor vehicles and
aircraft, construction (6% of GDP), electronics, chemicals.
Services (75% of GDP): Types--financial, business, distribution, transport, communication, hotels.
Trade (2008 est.): Exports of goods and services--$458.8 billion: manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals; food, beverages, tobacco. Major markets--U.S., European Union. Imports of goods and services--$630.7 billion: manufactured goods, machinery, fuels, foodstuffs. Major suppliers--U.S., European Union, Japan, and
China.
PEOPLE
The
United Kingdom's population in 2004 surpassed 60 million--the
third-largest in the European Union. Its overall population density is
one of the highest in the world. Almost one-third of the population
lives in England's prosperous and fertile southeast and is
predominantly urban and suburban--with about 7.2 million in the capital
of London, which remains the largest city in Europe. The United
Kingdom's high literacy rate (99%) is attributable to universal public
education introduced for the primary level in 1870 and secondary level
in 1900. Education is mandatory from ages 5 through 16. The Church of
England and the Church of Scotland are the official churches in their
respective parts of the country, but most religions found in the world
are represented in the United Kingdom.
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A group of islands
close to continental Europe, the British Isles have been subject to
many invasions and migrations, especially from Scandinavia and the
continent, including Roman occupation for several centuries.
Contemporary Britons are descended mainly from the varied ethnic stocks
that settled there before the 11th century. The pre-Celtic, Celtic,
Roman, Anglo-Saxon, and Norse influences were blended in Britain under
the Normans, Scandinavian Vikings who had lived in Northern France.
Although Celtic languages persist in Wales, Scotland, and Northern
Ireland, the predominant language is English, which is primarily a
blend of Anglo-Saxon and Norman French.
Communications: The international country dialing code for UK is
+44. The outgoing code is 00, or 048 for Northern Ireland, followed by
the relevant country code (e.g. 001 for the United States). There are a
wide range of city/area codes in use. Mobile phones work throughout the
country; the network operators use GSM 1800 networks, which may not be
compatible with some dual-band US cell phones. Internet cafes are
available in major towns and cities, train stations and airports.
Duty Free: When arriving from a non-EU country, travelers can
bring the following goods into the UK tax or duty free: 200 cigarettes,
100 cigarillos, 50 cigars or 250g of tobacco, 4 liters of still table
wine, 16 liters of beer, 1 liter of spirits or strong liqueurs or 2
liters of fortified wine, sparkling wine or other alcoholic beverages
of less than 22 per cent volume, £340 worth of all other goods
including perfume and souvenirs. When traveling from another EU country
to the UK visitors do not have to pay tax or duty on goods purchased in
said EU country provided tax was included in the purchase price, the
items are for personal use and have been transported to the UK by the
visitor, and do not exceed 3200 cigarettes, 400 cigarillos, 200 cigars,
3 kg of smoking tobacco, 110 liters of beer, 10 liters of spirits, 90
liters of wine and 20 liters of fortified wine. Note: Visitors arriving
from Estonia may carry 200 cigarettes or 250g of smoking tobacco and
those traveling from Bulgaria, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland,
Romania and Slovakia may bring 200 cigarettes.
Tourist Office
United Kingdom Tourist Office: +44 (0)20 7808 3864 (London) or www.visitbritain.com
Emergency
Emergencies: 999
Embassies
British Embassy, Washington DC, United States: +1 202 588 6500.
British High Commission, Ottawa, Canada: +1 613 237 1530.
British High Commission, Canberra, Australia: +61 (0)2 6270 6666.
British High Commission, Pretoria, South Africa: +27 (0)12 421 7500.
British Embassy, Dublin, Ireland: +353 (0)1 205 3700.
British High Commission, Wellington, New Zealand: +64 (0)4 924 2888.
United States Embassy, London: +44 (0)20 7499 9000.
Canadian High Commission, London: +44 (0)20 7258 6600.
Australian
High Commission, London: +44 (0)20 7379 4334.
South African High Commission, London: +44 (0)20 7451 7299.
Irish Embassy, London: +44 (0)20 7235 2171.
New Zealand High Commission, London: +44 (0)20 7930 8422. |
