Great Britain and Northern Irela Online Business Education. Administration. Economy. Politics. Culture. Religion. Media

Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Online Business Education. Economy. Politics. Culture. Religion. Media

Flag of United Kingdom
British Union

Country Profile

Capital City: London (metropolitan pop. about 7.2 million)

Other Cities: Belfast, Birmingham, Bradford, Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield.

Local Time: UTC No UTC offset

Geography:
Location: 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: 243,000 sq. km. (93,000 sq. mi.)
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:
Very British: more than one-half of the days are overcast;
generally mild and temperate; moderated by prevailing southwest winds over the North Atlantic Current.

Government: Constitutional monarchy.

Constitution: Unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice.

People:
Nationality: Noun--Briton(s). Adjective--British.
Population (2003 est.): 60.1 million.
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.
Literacy: 99%.

Business

Currency: British Pound £ (GBP)

Natural resources: Coal, oil, natural gas, tin, limestone, iron ore, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, lead, silica.

Agriculture products: Cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, poultry; fish.

Industries: 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.

Exports partners: USA 15.7%, Germany 10.5%, France 9.5%, Netherlands 6.9%, Ireland 6.5%, Belgium 5.6%, Spain 4.4%, Italy 4.4% (2003)

Imports partners: Germany 13.5%, USA 10.2%, France 8.1%, Netherlands 6.3%, Belgium 4.9%, Italy 4.7% (2003)

Internet Links

Official Sites of United Kingdom

The British Monarchy

United Kingdom Parliament

House of Commons

House of Lords

Number 10 Downing Street

Directgov

Foreign & Commonwealth Office Britain and the EU

Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO)

Diplomatic Missions
United Kingdom Mission to the United Nations

BritainUSA

UK Embassies Overseas

Foreign Embassies in the UK

Statistics
National Statistics

Weather
The Met Office

UK Maps
Map of the United Kingdom

News
BBC

BBC News Online

The Financial Times

The Guardian

The Independent

The Telegraph

The Times