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{{Stub}}
{{Infobox country
 
|conventional_long_name=United Kingdom of Great Britain<br>and Northern Ireland
{{Infobox Country
|common_name=the United Kingdom
|Box title = Country summary
|image_flag=Flag of the United Kingdom.svg
|Row 1 title = Capital
|alt_flag=A flag featuring both cross and saltire in red, white and blue
|Row 1 info = London
|image_coat=Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom.svg
|Row 2 title = Borders
|alt_coat=Coat of arms containing shield and crown in centre, flanked by lion and unicorn
|Row 2 info = [[Ireland]] 360 km
|symbol_type=Royal coat of arms
|Row 3 title = Government type
|image_map=EU-United Kingdom.svg
|Row 3 info = constitutional monarchy and Commonwealth realm
|alt_map=Two islands to the north-west of continental Europe. Highlighted are the larger island and the north-eastern fifth of the smaller island to the west.
|Row 4 title = Population
|map_caption={{map_caption |location_color=dark green |region=Europe |region_color=dark grey |subregion=the [[European Union]] |subregion_color=green |legend=EU-United Kingdom.svg}}
|Row 4 info = 61,113,205 (July 2010 est.)<ref name="CIA_GB">CIA - The World Facebook. [https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/countrytemplate_uk.html "United Kingdom"], from The World Facebook. Referenced 2010-09-21.</ref>
|national_anthem=<center>[[File:United States Navy Band - God Save the Queen.ogg]]</center><br />"[[God Save the Queen]]"<ref group="note">No law was passed making ''God Save the Queen'' the official anthem. In the British tradition, such laws are not necessary; proclamation and usage are sufficient to make it the official national anthem. ''God Save the Queen'' also serves as the [[Honors music|Royal anthem]] for several other countries.</ref>
|Row 5 title = Population growth %
|official_languages=English<ref>http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Governmentcitizensandrights/LivingintheUK/DG_10012519</ref><ref>http://www.thecommonwealth.org/YearbookHomeInternal/139560/</ref>
|Row 5 info = 0.28 (2010 est.)<ref name="CIA_GB" />
|regional_languages=Irish, [[Ulster Scots dialects|Ulster Scots]], [[Scottish Gaelic]]<!-- Keep 'Scottish Gaelic' - people will find Gaelic confusing as the Irish language is also commonly called Gaelic -->, [[Scots language|Scots]], [[Welsh language|Welsh]], [[Cornish language|Cornish]]{{#tag:ref|Under the [[Council of Europe]]'s [[European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages]], the Welsh, Scottish Gaelic, [[Cornish language|Cornish]], Irish, [[Scots language|Scots]] and its regional variant [[Ulster Scots dialects|Ulster Scots]] are officially recognised as [[Regional language|Regional]] or [[Minority language]]s by the [[United Kingdom Government|UK Government]] for the purposes of the Charter.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Scottish Government|url=http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/ArtsCulture/gaelic/gaelic-english/17910/europeancharter|title=European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages|accessdate=11 December 2010}}</ref> See also [[Languages of the United Kingdom]].|group="note"}}
|Row 6 title = Life expectancy
|ethnic_groups=92.1% [[White people|White]]<br /> 4.0% South Asian<br /> 2.0% [[Black people|Black]]<br /> 1.2% [[British Mixed-Race|Mixed]]<br /> 0.4% [[British Chinese|Chinese]]<br /> 0.4% [[United Kingdom Census 2001|Other]]
|Row 6 info = 79.01 years<ref name="CIA_GB" />
|ethnic_groups_year=[[United Kingdom Census 2001|2001]]<br /><small> See: [[Ethnic groups in the United Kingdom#2001 Census ethnicity results|UK ethnic groups list]]</small><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Expodata/Spreadsheets/D6588.xls |title=United Kingdom population by ethnic group |publisher=Office for National Statistics |date=1 April 2001 |work=[[United Kingdom Census 2001]] |accessdate=15 April 2009 |format=XLS}}</ref>
|Row 7 title = Unemployment
|demonym=British or [[British people|Briton]]
|Row 7 info = 7.6% (2009 est.)<ref name="CIA_GB" />
|capital=[[London]]
|Row 8 title = [[Wikipedia:Index of Economic Freedom|Index of Economic Freedom]]
|latd=51
|Row 8 info = 11<ref name="Heritage_GB">Heritage Foundation. [http://www.heritage.org/Index/Country/UnitedKingdom "United Kingdom"], Economic Freedom Score. A lower ranking is better; but please be careful when comparing between different countries or years. Referenced 2010-09-21.</ref>
|latm=30
|Row 9 title = [[Wikipedia:Corruption Perceptions Index|Corruption Perceptions Index]]
|latNS=N
|Row 9 info = 17<ref name="Transparency_GB">Transparency International. [http://www.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/cpi/2009/cpi_2009_table "United Kingdom"], Corruption Perceptions Index 2009. A lower ranking is better; but please note that the numbers cannot be compared between countries or years due to different methodology. Referenced 2010-09-21.</ref>
|longd=0
|Row 10 title = [[Wikipedia:Doing Business Report|Doing Business ranking]]
|longm=7
|Row 10 info = 5<ref name="Business_GB">Doing Business. [http://www.doingbusiness.org/economyrankings/ "United Kingdom"], Doing Business 2010 (part of The World Bank Group). A lower ranking is better; but please be careful when comparing between different countries or years. Referenced 2010-09-21.</ref>
|longEW=W
|largest_city=[[London]]
|government_type=[[Unitary state|Unitary]] [[parliamentary system|parliamentary democracy]] and [[constitutional monarchy]]
|leader_title1=[[Monarchy of the United Kingdom|Monarch]]
|leader_name1=[[Elizabeth II]]
|leader_title2=[[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]]
|leader_name2= [[David Cameron]] [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|MP]]
|sovereignty_type=[[History of the United Kingdom|Formation]]
|legislature=[[Parliament of the United Kingdom|Parliament]]
|upper_house=[[House of Lords]]
|lower_house=[[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]]
|state_religion=[[Anglicanism]]
|sovereignty_note=
|established_event1=[[Acts of Union 1707]]
|established_date1=1 May 1707
|established_event2=[[Acts of Union 1800]]
|established_date2=1 January 1801
|established_event3=[[Anglo-Irish Treaty]]
|established_date3=12 April 1922
|accessionEUdate=1 January 1973
|religion=[[Church of England|Anglican]]
|EUseats = 78
|area_rank = 79th
|area_magnitude = 1 E11
|area_km2 = 243610
|area_sq_mi = {{convert|243610|km2|sqmi|disp=output number only}}
|percent_water = 1.34
|population_estimate = 62,008,048<ref>{{cite web |url= http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/tgm/table.do?tab=table&language=en&pcode=tps00001&tableSelection=1&footnotes=yes&labeling=labels&plugin=1 |title=Total population at 1&nbsp;January |publisher=Eurostat |date =11 March 2011 |accessdate =29 April 2011}}</ref>
|population_estimate_year = 2010
|population_estimate_rank = 22nd
|population_census = 58,789,194<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.statistics.gov.uk/census2001/pop2001/united_kingdom.asp |title = Census 2001: Population estimates |publisher=Office for National Statistics |accessdate =21 April 2011}}</ref>
|population_census_year = 2001
|population_density_km2 = 254.7
|population_density_sq_mi = 659.6
|population_density_rank = 51st
|GDP_PPP_year=2010
|GDP_PPP=$2.173&nbsp;trillion<ref name=imf2>{{cite web |url=http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2011/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=2007&ey=2010&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=112&s=NGDPD%2CNGDPDPC%2CPPPGDP%2CPPPPC%2CLP&grp=0&a=&pr.x=25&pr.y=6 |title=United Kingdom |publisher=International Monetary Fund |month =April |year =2011 |accessdate=8 May 2011}}</ref>
|GDP_PPP_rank=7th
|GDP_PPP_per_capita=$34,920<ref name=imf2/>
|GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank=21st
|GDP_nominal_year=2010
|GDP_nominal_rank=6th
|GDP_nominal_per_capita=$36,120<ref name=imf2/>
|GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank=22nd
|GDP_nominal=$2.247&nbsp;trillion<ref name=imf2/>
|HDI_year=2010
|HDI=0.849<ref>{{cite web |url= http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2010_EN_Table1.pdf |title= Human Development Report 2010 |publisher=United Nations | accessdate =21 April 2011| page = 143 ff}}</ref>
|HDI_rank=26th
|HDI_category=<span style="color:#090;">very&nbsp;high</span>
|EFI_year                = 2011
|EFI                      = {{decrease}} 74.5<ref name="EFI">{{cite web|url=http://www.heritage.org/Index/Country/UnitedKingdom|title=Index of Economic Freedom 2011|year=2011|publisher=[[The Heritage Foundation]]|accessdate=2011-05-22}}</ref>
|EFI_rank                = 16th
|EFI_category            = <span style="color:#006000;">high</span>
|CPI_year                = 2010
|CPI                      = {{decrease}} 7.6<ref name="CPI">{{cite web|url=http://www.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/cpi/2010/in_detail|title=Corruption Perceptions Index 2010|year=2010|publisher=[[Transparency International]]|accessdate=2011-05-22}}</ref>
|CPI_rank                = 20th
|CPI_category            = <span style="color:#006000;">high</span>
|GIR_year                =
|GIR                      =
|GIR_rank                =
|GIR_category            =
|DBR_year                = 2011
|DBR                      = {{steady}}<ref name="DBR">{{cite web|url=http://www.doingbusiness.org/data/exploreeconomies/united-kingdom/|title=Doing Business Report 2011|year=2011|publisher=[[International Finance Corporation]], [[World Bank]]|accessdate=2011-05-22}}</ref>
|DBR_rank                = 4th
|DBR_category            = <span style="color:#090;">very high</span>
|Gini=41<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.poverty.org.uk/09/index.shtml |title =Income inequalities |publisher=The Poverty Site |accessdate =21 April 2011}}</ref>
|Gini_year=2008–09
|currency=[[Pound sterling]]
|currency_code=GBP
|country_code=GBR
|time_zone=[[Greenwich Mean Time|GMT]]
|utc_offset=+0
|time_zone_DST=[[Western European Summer Time|BST]]
|date_format = dd/mm/yyyy ([[Anno Domini|AD]])
|utc_offset_DST=+1
|drives_on=left<ref group="note">British dependencies drive on the left except for [[British Indian Ocean Territory|BIOT]] and [[Gibraltar]].</ref>
|cctld=[[.uk]]<ref group="note">[[ISO 3166-1 alpha-2]] states that this should be [[Great Britain|GB]] and [[.gb]] was initially used by the Government, but registration has been suppressed in favour of [[.uk]]. The [[.eu]] domain is shared with other [[European Union]] member states.</ref>
|calling_code=[[Telephone numbers in the United Kingdom|44]]
}}
}}


The '''United Kingdom''' has historically played a leading role in developing parliamentary democracy and in advancing literature and science. At its zenith in the 19th century, the British Empire stretched over one-fourth of the earth's surface. The first half of the 20th century saw the UK's strength seriously depleted in two World Wars and the Irish republic withdraw from the union. The second half witnessed the dismantling of the Empire and the UK rebuilding itself into a modern and prosperous European nation. As one of five permanent members of the UN Security Council, a founding member of [[NATO]], and of the [[Commonwealth]], the UK pursues a global approach to foreign policy. The UK is also an active member of the EU, although it chose to remain outside the [[Economic and Monetary Union]]. Devolution and constitutional reform have been significant recent issues in the UK. The Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales, and the Northern Ireland Assembly were established in 1999, but the latter was suspended until May 2007 due to wrangling over the peace process.<ref name="CIA_GB" />
The '''United Kingdom''' has historically played a leading role in developing parliamentary democracy and in advancing literature and science. At its zenith in the 19th century, the British Empire stretched over one-fourth of the earth's surface. The first half of the 20th century saw the UK's strength seriously depleted in two World Wars and the Irish republic withdraw from the union. The second half witnessed the dismantling of the Empire and the UK rebuilding itself into a modern and prosperous European nation. As one of five permanent members of the UN Security Council, a founding member of [[NATO]], and of the [[Commonwealth]], the UK pursues a global approach to foreign policy. The UK is also an active member of the EU, although it chose to remain outside the [[Economic and Monetary Union]]. Devolution and constitutional reform have been significant recent issues in the UK. The Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales, and the Northern Ireland Assembly were established in 1999, but the latter was suspended until May 2007 due to wrangling over the peace process.<ref name="CIA_GB">CIA - The World Factbook. [https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/countrytemplate_uk.html "United Kingdom"], from The World Factbook. Referenced 2010-09-21.</ref>


{{See also|Bank of England}}
{{See also|Bank of England}}
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| 1.498
| 1.498
|}
|}
==Notes==
<references group="note"/>


==References==
==References==
Line 126: Line 206:
* [http://mises.org/daily/4809 The 1822 Refutation of the Spitalfields Act of Wage and Price Controls] by Anders Mikkelsen, November 2010; about the ''[http://books.google.com/books/download/Observations_on_the_ruinous_tendency_of.pdf?id=1pAuAAAAYAAJ&output=pdf Observations on the Ruinous Tendency of the Spitalfields Act to the Silk Manufacture of London]'' (pdf), 1822
* [http://mises.org/daily/4809 The 1822 Refutation of the Spitalfields Act of Wage and Price Controls] by Anders Mikkelsen, November 2010; about the ''[http://books.google.com/books/download/Observations_on_the_ruinous_tendency_of.pdf?id=1pAuAAAAYAAJ&output=pdf Observations on the Ruinous Tendency of the Spitalfields Act to the Silk Manufacture of London]'' (pdf), 1822
*{{wplink}}
*{{wplink}}
{{Stub}}


[[Category:Countries]]
[[Category:Countries]]

Revision as of 22:58, 22 May 2011

United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Northern Ireland
A flag featuring both cross and saltire in red, white and blue Coat of arms containing shield and crown in centre, flanked by lion and unicorn
Anthem: 
File:United States Navy Band - God Save the Queen.oga

"God Save the Queen"[note 1]
Two islands to the north-west of continental Europe. Highlighted are the larger island and the north-eastern fifth of the smaller island to the west.
Two islands to the north-west of continental Europe. Highlighted are the larger island and the north-eastern fifth of the smaller island to the west.
Location of  United Kingdom  (dark green)

– on the European continent  (green & dark grey)
– in the European Union  (green)  —  [Legend]
Capital
(and largest city)		London
51°30′N 0°7′W / 51.5°N 0.117°W / 51.5; -0.117
Official language(s) English[1][2]
Recognised regional languages Irish, Ulster Scots, Scottish Gaelic, Scots, Welsh, Cornish[note 2]
Ethnic groups (2001
See: UK ethnic groups list[4])		 92.1% White
4.0% South Asian
2.0% Black
1.2% Mixed
0.4% Chinese
0.4% Other
Demonym British or Briton
Government Unitary parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy
 -  Monarch Elizabeth II
 -  Prime Minister David Cameron MP
Legislature Parliament
 -  Upper House House of Lords
 -  Lower House House of Commons
Formation
 -  Acts of Union 1707 1 May 1707 
 -  Acts of Union 1800 1 January 1801 
 -  Anglo-Irish Treaty 12 April 1922 
EU accession 1 January 1973
Area
 -  Total 243,610 km2 (79th)
94,060 sq mi 
 -  Water (%) 1.34
Population
 -  2010 estimate 62,008,048[5] (22nd)
 -  2001 census 58,789,194[6] 
 -  Density 254.7/km2 (51st)
659.6/sq mi
GDP (PPP) 2010 estimate
 -  Total $2.173 trillion[7] (7th)
 -  Per capita $34,920[7] (21st)
GDP (nominal) 2010 estimate
 -  Total $2.247 trillion[7] (6th)
 -  Per capita $36,120[7] (22nd)
Gini (2008–09) 41[8] 
HDI (2010) 0.849[9] (very high) (26th)
EFI (2011) decrease 74.5[10] (high) (16th)
CPI (2010) decrease 7.6[11] (high) (20th)
DBR (2011) Steady[12] (very high) (4th)
Currency Pound sterling (GBP)
Time zone GMT (UTC+0)
 -  Summer (DST) BST (UTC+1)
Date formats dd/mm/yyyy (AD)
Drives on the left[note 3]
Internet TLD .uk[note 4]
Calling code 44

The United Kingdom has historically played a leading role in developing parliamentary democracy and in advancing literature and science. At its zenith in the 19th century, the British Empire stretched over one-fourth of the earth's surface. The first half of the 20th century saw the UK's strength seriously depleted in two World Wars and the Irish republic withdraw from the union. The second half witnessed the dismantling of the Empire and the UK rebuilding itself into a modern and prosperous European nation. As one of five permanent members of the UN Security Council, a founding member of NATO, and of the Commonwealth, the UK pursues a global approach to foreign policy. The UK is also an active member of the EU, although it chose to remain outside the Economic and Monetary Union. Devolution and constitutional reform have been significant recent issues in the UK. The Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales, and the Northern Ireland Assembly were established in 1999, but the latter was suspended until May 2007 due to wrangling over the peace process.[13]

See also: Bank of England

Economical characteristics

  • Currency: Pound sterling (ISO code: GBP)
  • Central bank discount rate: 0.86% (31 December 2008)[13]
  • Commercial banks lending rate: 4.63% (31 December 2008)[13]
  • Stock of money (M1): $NA[13]
  • Quasi money (with M1 makes M2): $NA[13]


Statistics

Statistic / Year 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
GDP (million USD)[14] 1 502 560 1 477 580 1 470 890 1 612 060 1 860 810 2 198 090 2 280 180 2 435 710 2 803 460 2 674 060
Govt. debt (% of GDP)[15] 47.484 47.469 42.507 42.528 42.598 44.905 47.300 47.133 47.863 57.523
Govt. revenue (% of GDP)[16] 36.560 37.114 37.082 35.498 35.096 35.918 36.985 37.708 37.380 38.408
Govt. expenses (% of GDP)[17] 35.652 36.204 36.651 37.633 38.809 39.200 41.222 40.378 40.005 42.827
Debt to revenue (years) 1.299 1.279 1.146 1.198 1.214 1.250 1.279 1.250 1.280 1.498

Notes

  1. ↑ No law was passed making God Save the Queen the official anthem. In the British tradition, such laws are not necessary; proclamation and usage are sufficient to make it the official national anthem. God Save the Queen also serves as the Royal anthem for several other countries.
  2. ↑ Under the Council of Europe's European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, the Welsh, Scottish Gaelic, Cornish, Irish, Scots and its regional variant Ulster Scots are officially recognised as Regional or Minority languages by the UK Government for the purposes of the Charter.[3] See also Languages of the United Kingdom.
  3. ↑ British dependencies drive on the left except for BIOT and Gibraltar.
  4. ↑ ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 states that this should be GB and .gb was initially used by the Government, but registration has been suppressed in favour of .uk. The .eu domain is shared with other European Union member states.

References

Note: statistical data was rounded. Different sources may use different methodologies for their estimates. Debt to revenue is calculated by dividing the two variables from their original ('unrounded') values. It represents how long it would a government take to repay its entire debt if it used its whole revenue for this purpose.

  1. ↑ http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Governmentcitizensandrights/LivingintheUK/DG_10012519
  2. ↑ http://www.thecommonwealth.org/YearbookHomeInternal/139560/
  3. ↑ "European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages". Scottish Government. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/ArtsCulture/gaelic/gaelic-english/17910/europeancharter. Retrieved 11 December 2010. 
  4. ↑ "United Kingdom population by ethnic group" (XLS). United Kingdom Census 2001. Office for National Statistics. 1 April 2001. http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Expodata/Spreadsheets/D6588.xls. Retrieved 15 April 2009. 
  5. ↑ "Total population at 1 January". Eurostat. 11 March 2011. http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/tgm/table.do?tab=table&language=en&pcode=tps00001&tableSelection=1&footnotes=yes&labeling=labels&plugin=1. Retrieved 29 April 2011. 
  6. ↑ "Census 2001: Population estimates". Office for National Statistics. http://www.statistics.gov.uk/census2001/pop2001/united_kingdom.asp. Retrieved 21 April 2011. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 "United Kingdom". International Monetary Fund. April 2011. http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2011/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=2007&ey=2010&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=112&s=NGDPD%2CNGDPDPC%2CPPPGDP%2CPPPPC%2CLP&grp=0&a=&pr.x=25&pr.y=6. Retrieved 8 May 2011. 
  8. ↑ "Income inequalities". The Poverty Site. http://www.poverty.org.uk/09/index.shtml. Retrieved 21 April 2011. 
  9. ↑ "Human Development Report 2010". United Nations. p. 143 ff. http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2010_EN_Table1.pdf. Retrieved 21 April 2011. 
  10. ↑ "Index of Economic Freedom 2011". The Heritage Foundation. 2011. http://www.heritage.org/Index/Country/UnitedKingdom. Retrieved 2011-05-22. 
  11. ↑ "Corruption Perceptions Index 2010". Transparency International. 2010. http://www.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/cpi/2010/in_detail. Retrieved 2011-05-22. 
  12. ↑ "Doing Business Report 2011". International Finance Corporation, World Bank. 2011. http://www.doingbusiness.org/data/exploreeconomies/united-kingdom/. Retrieved 2011-05-22. 
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 CIA - The World Factbook. "United Kingdom", from The World Factbook. Referenced 2010-09-21.
  14. ↑ World Bank. "United Kingdom: GDP", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-21.
  15. ↑ World Bank. "United Kingdom: government debt", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-21.
  16. ↑ World Bank. "United Kingdom: government revenue", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-21.
  17. ↑ World Bank. "United Kingdom: government expenses", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-21.

Links


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