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| GEOGRAPHIC AND DEMOGRAPHIC DATA |
| Location |
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Western Europe, islands including the northern one-sixth of the island of Ireland between the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea, northwest of France |
| Area |
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total: 244,820 sq km
water: 3,230 sq km
note: includes Rockall and Shetland Islands
land: 241,590 sq km |
| Border countries |
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Ireland 360 km |
| Climate |
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temperate; moderated by prevailing southwest winds over the North Atlantic Current; more than one-half of the days are overcast |
| Terrain |
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mostly rugged hills and low mountains; level to rolling plains in east and southeast |
| Natural resources |
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coal, petroleum, natural gas, tin, limestone, iron ore, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, lead, silica, arable land |
| PEOPLE |
| Population |
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59,778,002 (July 2002 est.) |
| Age structure |
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0-14 years: 18.7% (male 5,732,385; female 5,443,900) |
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15-64 years: 65.5% (male 19,803,478; female 19,381,734) |
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65 years and over: 15.8% (male 3,931,463; female 5,485,042) (2002 est.) |
| Population growth rate |
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0.21% (2002 est.) |
| Birth rate |
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11.34 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
| Death rate |
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10.3 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
| Net migration rate |
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1.06 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
| Sex ratio |
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at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female |
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under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female |
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15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female |
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65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female |
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total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate |
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5.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth |
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total population: 77.99 years |
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female: 80.84 years (2002 est.) |
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male: 75.29 years |
| Ethnic groups |
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English 81.5%, Scottish 9.6%, Irish 2.4%, Welsh 1.9%, Ulster 1.8%, West Indian, Indian, Pakistani, and other 2.8% |
| Religions |
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Anglican and Roman Catholic 40 million, Muslim 1.5 million, Presbyterian 800,000, Methodist 760,000, Sikh 500,000, Hindu 500,000, Jewish 350,000 |
| Languages |
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English, Welsh (about 26% of the population of Wales), Scottish form of Gaelic (about 60,000 in Scotland) |
| Literacy |
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definition: age 15 and over has completed five or more years of schooling |
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male: NA% |
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female: NA% |
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total population: 99% |
| GOVERNMENT |
| Capital |
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London |
| Constitution |
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unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice |
| Legal system |
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common law tradition with early Roman and modern continental influences; no judicial review of Acts of Parliament; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations; British courts and legislation are increasingly subject to review by European Union courts |
| Chief of state |
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Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); Heir Apparent Prince CHARLES (son of the queen, born 14 November 1948) |
| Head of State |
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Prime Minister Anthony (Tony) BLAIR (since 2 May 1997) |
| Cabinet |
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Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the prime minister |
| Legislative branch |
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bicameral Parliament comprised of House of Lords (consists of approximately 500 life peers, 92 hereditary peers and 26 clergy) and House of Commons (659 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms unless the House is dissolved earlier) |
| Judicial branch |
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House of Lords (highest court of appeal; several Lords of Appeal in Ordinary are appointed by the monarch for life); Supreme Courts of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland (comprising the Courts of Appeal, the High Courts of Justice, and the Crown Courts); Scotland's Court of Session and Court of the Justiciary |
| ECONOMY |
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The UK, a leading trading power and financial center, is one of the quartet of trillion dollar economies of Western Europe. Over the past two decades the government has greatly reduced public ownership and contained the growth of social welfare programs. Agriculture is intensive, highly mechanized, and efficient by European standards, producing about 60% of food needs with only 1% of the labor force. The UK has large coal, natural gas, and oil reserves; primary energy production accounts for 10% of GDP, one of the highest shares of any industrial nation. Services, particularly banking, insurance, and business services, account by far for the largest proportion of GDP while industry continues to decline in importance. GDP growth slipped in 2001 as the global downturn, the high value of the pound, and the bursting of the "new economy" bubble hurt manufacturing and exports. Still, the economy is one of the strongest in Europe; inflation, interest rates, and unemployment remain low, and the government expects growth of 2% to 2.5% in 2002. The relatively good economic performance has complicated the BLAIR government's efforts to make a case for Britain to join the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). The Prime Minister has pledged to hold a public referendum if membership meets Chancellor of the Exchequer BROWN's five economic "tests." Scheduled for assessment by mid-2003, the tests will determine whether joining EMU would have a positive effect on British investment, employment, and growth. Critics point out, however, that the economy is thriving outside of EMU, and they point to public opinion polls that continue to show a majority of Britons opposed to the single currency. |
| GDP |
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purchasing power parity - $1.47 trillion (2001 est.) |
GDP
real growth rate |
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2% (2001 est.) |
| GDP- per capita: |
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purchasing power parity - $24,700 (2001 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector: |
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agriculture: 2%
industry: 25%
services: 73% |
| Population below poverty line |
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17% |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share |
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lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 27% |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) |
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2% (2001 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation |
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agriculture 1%, industry 25%, services 74% |
| Unemployment rate |
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5% (2001 est.) |
| Budget |
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revenues: $565 billion
expenditures: $540 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY01) |
| Industries |
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machine tools, electric power equipment, automation equipment, railroad equipment, shipbuilding, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, electronics and communications equipment, metals, chemicals, coal, petroleum, paper and paper products, food processing, textiles, clothing, and other consumer goods |
| Agriculture - products |
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cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, poultry; fish |
| FOREIGN TRADE |
| Exports |
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$287 billion (f.o.b., 2001) |
| Exports - commodities |
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manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals; food, beverages, tobacco |
| Exports - partners |
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EU 54% (Germany 11%, France 9%, Netherlands 7%, Ireland 7%), US 15% |
| Imports |
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$337 billion (c.i.f., 2001) |
| Imports - commodities |
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manufactured goods, machinery, fuels; foodstuffs |
| Imports - partners |
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EU 48% (Germany 11%, France 7%, Netherlands 6%), US 13%, Japan 5% |
| Currency |
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British pound (GBP) |
| Exchange rates |
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Exchange rates:
British pounds per US dollar - 0.6981 (January 2002), 0.6944 (2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), 0.6106 (1997) |
| Fiscal year |
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1 April - 31 March |
| COMMUNICATIONS |
| Telephones |
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34.878 million |
| Telephone system |
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general assessment: technologically advanced domestic and international system |
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domestic: equal mix of buried cables, microwave radio relay, and fiber-optic systems |
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international: 40 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 10 Intelsat (7 Atlantic Ocean and 3 Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region), and 1 Eutelsat; at least 8 large international switching centers |
| TRANSPORTATION |
| Railways |
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total: 16,878 km
standard gauge: 16,536 km 1.435-m gauge (4,928 km electrified; 12,591 km double- or multiple-tracked)
broad gauge: 342 km 1.600-m gauge (190 km double-tracked)
note: all 1.600-m gauge track is in common carrier service in Northern Ireland (1996) |
| Highways |
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total: 371,603 km
paved: 371,603 km (including 3,303 km of expressways)
unpaved: 0 km (1998 est.) |
| Waterways |
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3,200 km |
| Pipelines |
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crude oil (almost all insignificant) 933 km; petroleum products 2,993 km; natural gas 12,800 km |
| Ports and harbors |
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Aberdeen, Belfast, Bristol, Cardiff, Dover, Falmouth, Felixstowe, Glasgow, Grangemouth, Hull, Leith, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Peterhead, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Scapa Flow, Southampton, Sullom Voe, Teesport, Tyne |
| Airports |
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470 |
| Airports - with paved runways |
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total: 332
over 3,047 m: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 33
914 to 1,523 m: 84
under 914 m: 57 (2001)
1,524 to 2,437 m: 150 |
| Airports - with unpaved runways |
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total: 138
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 23
under 914 m: 114 |
| Heliports |
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13 |
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