The United Kingdom

The United Kingdom (in English: United Kingdom), officially called the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (in English: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland), RU or abbreviated form (in English: UK), is a sovereign island country, member of the European Union, located to the northwest of Continental Europe. Its territory is geographically formed by the island of Great Britain, the northeast of the island of Ireland and many small islands. Northern Ireland is the only part of the country with a land border, which separates it from the Republic of Ireland. Britain outlines north and west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the east by the North Sea, south by the English Channel and to the west by the Irish Sea.

The UK is a unitary state comprised of four constituent countries: Scotland, Wales, England and Ireland Norte. It is governed by a parliamentary system with capital and seat of government in London, but with three devolved national administrations in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, the capital of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland respectively. It is a parliamentary monarchy Elizabeth II remains the head of state. Colloquial and wrongly called Britain and England, due to the greater weight of both (land and kingdom, respectively) within the state. The Crown Dependencies of the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man are not part of the country, but are integrated into a personal union with him.

UK has fourteen overseas territories, all remnants of what was the British Empire, which at its international territory got to reach and cover close to a quarter of the global land area. Elizabeth II remains the head of the Commonwealth of Nations and head of state being of each of the Commonwealth realms.

It is a developed country that their net volume and gross domestic product is the fifth world economy, with France the sixth and tenth Brazil (as of end of 2015). It was the first industrialized country world and major world power in the nineteenth century and early twentieth century, 9th century (1815-1945), but the economic cost of two world wars and the decline of its empire in the latter part of XX century diminished its role in international relations. However, it still maintains a significant economic, cultural, military and political influence and is a nuclear power. It is a Member State of the European Union, one of the five permanent members of the Security Council of United Nations veto, a member of the G8, G20, NATO, OECD, UKUSA, the Commonwealth of Nations the Common Travel Area.

Etymology

The official name is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (in English: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland), United Kingdom and UK being abbreviated forms used in Spanish. The name was first proposed in the Act of Union of 1707, in which the kingdoms of England and Wales decided to form a new kingdom along with Scotland, which would have the name of United Kingdom of Great Bretaña. Later, with the 1800 Act of Union of the island of Ireland became part of the country, so the name was changed to United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. In 1927, when the Republic of Ireland gained its independence, the country gained its present name United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

It is often called by the name of the island comprising most of its territory, Britain, or, by extension, by the name of one of his constituents, England countries. Gentilicio the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain is British, but also, by extension, is often used in everyday speech the adjective inglés.

Although the United Kingdom, as a sovereign state, is a country, England, Scotland, Wales, and to a lesser extent Northern Ireland, are also considered as "countries", although non-State soberanos. Website British Prime Minister has used the expression "country within a country" to describe the United Unido.

Some statistical summaries, also refer to the countries of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as "regions", while Northern Ireland also known as "province".

History

The May 1, 1707, the Kingdom of Great Bretaña was created by the political union held between the Kingdom of England (where it was Wales) and the Kingdom of Scotland. This event was the result of the Treaty of Union signed on 22 July 1706 and ratified by the English and Scottish parliaments to create the Act of Union in 1707. Almost a century later, the Kingdom of Ireland under British rule since 1691, joined with the Kingdom of Great Britain to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, as stipulated in the Act of Union of 1800. Although England and Scotland were separate states before 1707, remained in a personal union since 1603, when He held the Union of Coronas.

In its first century of existence, the country played an important role in developing Western ideas of the parliamentary system, plus it made significant contributions to literature, the arts and ciencia. The Industrial Revolution, led by the United united, transformed the country and gave sustenance to the growing British Empire. During this time, like other powers was involved in colonial exploitation, including the slave trade in the Atlantic, but with the approval of the Law of slaves in 1807, the country was one of the pioneers in the fight against esclavitud.

After the defeat of the French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte in the Napoleonic Wars, the nation emerged as the principal naval and economic power in the nineteenth century and remained an eminent power into the twentieth century. The capital, London was the world's largest city from 1831 to 1925. The British Empire reached its greatest extent in 1921, when after the First World War, the League of Nations gave the mandate over the former German colonies and Ottoman possessions . A year later, the British Broadcasting Company (British Broadcasting Company), subsequently became the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation),  the first large-scale broadcasting worldwide was created

In 1921, the internal conflict in Ireland on the Irish demands for self-government, eventually led to the partition of the isla. At the same time, the victory of Sinn Féin in the general election of 1918, followed by a war of independence , they led to the creation of the Irish Free State; Northern Ireland chose to remain part of the United Unido. As a result, in 1927 the formal name of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland changed to its current name, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The Great Depression, erupted at a time when the country was still far from recovering from the effects of World War II.

The UK was one of the three major Allies of World War II. After the defeat of its European allies in the first year of the war, the British army continued the fight against Germany in an aerial campaign known as the Battle of Britain. After the victory, the country was one of the three great powers met to plan the postwar world. The Second World War left damaged the national economy. However, with the help of Marshall and expensive loans from the United States and Canada plan, the nation began the path of recuperación.

Battle of Britain ended the German advance in Western Europe.

The immediate post-war years saw the establishment of the welfare state, including one of the earliest and largest public health services in the world. Changes in government policy also attracted people from across the Commonwealth, born a multicultural state. Although the new limits of Britain's political role were confirmed by the Suez Crisis of 1956, the international spread of the English language meant the continuing influence of literature and culture, while from the 1960s its popular culture also He began to have great influence on the Foreign.

After a period of global economic slowdown and industrial strife in the 1970s, the next decade saw the substantial influx of revenue from the sale of North Sea oil and economic growth. The mandate of Margaret Thatcher marked a significant change in the direction of political and economic consensus of the postwar period; a path followed since 1997 the Labour governments of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.

The UK was one of the twelve founding members of the European Union at its inception in 1992 with the Treaty of Maastricht. Previously, from 1973 he was a member of the forerunner of the European Union, the European Economic Community (EEC). The current Conservative government is in favor of reducing the powers and responsibilities of various government agencies, to transfer to the European Union, 29 while the opposition Labour Party, have mixed attitudes to regard. The end of the twentieth century He saw major changes in the British government, with the establishment of decentralized administrations granted for Northern Ireland, Scotland and Gales.

The financial crisis of 2008 severely affected the British economy. Two years later, the government led by David Cameron introduced austerity measures to cope with the substantial budget deficits that occurred during the crisis. In 2014, the Scottish government held a referendum on Scottish independence in September that year, it is rejected the proposal of independence with 55% of votos.

Government and politics

The UK is a parliamentary monarchy whose head of state is Elizabeth II. It is also the head of state of fifteen other countries of the Commonwealth of Nations, placing the UK in a personal union with those nations. The queen has sovereignty over the Crown Dependencies, the Isle of Man and the bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey. These are not part of the UK, but the British government manages their foreign affairs and defense, in addition to that parliament has the authority to legislate on their behalf.

The UK does not have a document that serves as a fully defined constitution, something that only occurs in two other countries, Israel and New Zelanda. The Constitution of the United Kingdom, therefore, it consists mainly of a collection of different sources written, including laws, statutes, case law and international treaties. As there is no technical difference between ordinary statutes and "constitutional law", parliament can carry out a "constitutional reform" simply by passing a law, and therefore has the power to change or abolish almost any written element or unwritten constitution. However, there are limitations to the adoption of laws, for example, no legislature can create laws that can not be changed on a futuro.

The UK has a parliamentary government based on the Westminster system, which has been emulated around the world, a legacy of the British Empire. The Parliament of the United Kingdom, which meets in the Palace of Westminster has two chambers: the House of Commons (elected by the people) and the House of Lords. Any law passed by parliament requires royal assent to become law. The fact that the parliament decentralized assemblies in Scotland and Northern Ireland and Wales are not sovereign bodies and could be abolished by the British Parliament, makes the latter is the most important legislative body in the country.

The post of head of government of the United Kingdom, Prime Minister, 37 is occupied by the member of parliament who gets the most votes in the House of Commons, usually is the leader of the political party with the most seats in the chamber. The prime minister and the cabinet are appointed by the monarch to form the "HMG", although Prime Minister chooses the Cabinet, and by convention, the monarch respected their choice.

Traditionally, the cabinet is made up of members of the party of Prime Minister of both legislative chambers, the majority of the House of Commons. Executive power is exercised by the Prime Minister and cabinet, who made his oath before the king, to join the Privy Council, so that they become Ministers of the Crown. In the 2010 election, the Conservative Party leader David Cameron ended thirteen Labour mandate and assumed the role of first ministro. Cameron was able to repeat this success in the general elections of 2015, where the Conservative Party He won a majority absoluta.

The general elections are called by the monarch. Although there is no minimum for a seat in parliament term, the Parliament Act of 1911 requires that you must call a new election within five years after the previous election. Prior to the elections to the House of Commons, the country was divided into 646 constituencies, with 529 in England, 18 in Northern Ireland, 59 in Scotland and 40 in Wales, 41 this number rose to 650 in elections General 2010. Each constituency elects one Member of Parliament by simple majority.

The Conservative Party, the Labour Party and the Scottish National Party (which occurs only in Scotland) are the main political parties; in the general elections of 2015 they won 619 of the 650 seats available in the House of Commons. Most of the remaining seats were won by parties that, like the Scottish National Party, only compete in one part of the country, as the Party of Wales (only in Wales), the Democratic Unionist Party, the Social Democratic and Labour Party, the Ulster Unionist Party and Sinn Fein (Northern Ireland only, though Sinn Féin also competes in elections in Ireland) 42, in addition to the Liberal Democrats (which occur at the national level and won 8 seats). For elections to the European Parliament, the UK currently has 72 members elected by vote in bloque. Doubts about the true sovereignty of each constituent nation emerged after the United Kingdom's accession to the Union Europea.

The country does not have a single legal system, which was created by the political union of previously independent countries and Article 19 of the Treaty of Union of 1707 guarantees the existence of separate legal system escocés. Today, the country It has three different legal systems: the law of England, Northern Ireland law and Scots law. In October 2009, the recent constitutional changes brought about the creation of a new Supreme Court to assume the functions of appeal the Appeal Committee of the House of Lores. The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is the court of appeal high for several independent Commonwealth countries, overseas territories and dependencies of the British Crown.

External relationships

The country is a member state of the European Union, although it belongs to several international organizations as are the United Nations, the Commonwealth, the G-8, the G-7, G-20, the Organization North Atlantic Treaty, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the World Trade Organization, the Council of Europe, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. It is also one of the permanent members of Security Council UN veto.

The most notable alliance between the UK with another country is their "special relationship" with the United States, but also has close relations with several members of the European Union, NATO, the Commonwealth and other powerful countries like Japan. The global presence and British influence is further amplified through its trading relations, official development assistance and its armed forces, which hold about eighty military installations and other deployments around the world

Armed forces

The Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force are collectively known as the British Armed Forces. The three forces are managed by the Ministry of Defence and controlled by the Defence Council, chaired by the Secretary of State for Defence. British troops are among those with better training, besides being the most technologically advanced. According to various sources, including the Ministry of Defence, the UK has the third or fourth highest budget for military spending worldwide, despite having only the 25th largest in terms of personal army. Currently, total defense spending accounts for 2.5% of PIB.

The Marina is a blue water navy, one of three survivors, along with the French Navy and the Navy of the United States.50 The July 3, 2008, the Ministry of Defence signed several agreements with a value of 3, £ 2 million to build two new portaaviones.51 The UK is one of the five countries (along with the United States, China, Russia and France) who may be in possession of nuclear weapons, 52 using a Vanguard-class submarine, which it has the system Trident II ballistic missile D5.

The main functions of the British armed forces are the protection and defense of the United Kingdom and its overseas territories, promoting the interests of global security and supporting international efforts to maintain peace. In addition, they are active and regular participants in NATO, UN and other international agencies seeking the peaceful resolution of conflicts. Several overseas garrisons and facilities of the British Army around the world, mainly in Ascension Island, Belize, Brunei, Canada, Diego Garcia, the Falkland Islands / Malvinas, Germany, Gibraltar, Kenya, Cyprus and Catar.

In 2010, the British military reported that it had 197,840 militantes. Besides, there are the bodies of the UK Special Forces, the Reserve Forces and the Forces Relief Real. With this, the number of soldiers amounts to 435 500, including the active and reserve personnel. Despite the military capabilities of the United Kingdom, a recent policy on defense issues assumes that "the most demanding operations" would be undertaken as part of a coalición.55 aside the intervention in Sierra Leone, operations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Afghanistan and Iraq can be taken as a precedent for this policy. In fact, the last war in which the British army fought on its own was during the Falklands War in 1982, where they defeated the Argentine Army.

Human rights

Human rights, about membership in the seven bodies of the International Bill of Human Rights, including the Human Rights Committee (HRC), United Kingdom has signed or ratified:

 Status of major international human rights instruments

United Kingdom	international treaties
	CESCR		CCPR			CERD	CED	CEDAW		CAT		CRC			MWC	CRPD
	CESCR	CESCR-OP	CCPR	CCPR-OP1	CCPR-OP2-DP			CEDAW	CEDAW-OP	CAT	CAT-OP	CRC	CRC-OP-AC	CRC-OP-SC		CRPD	CRPD-OP
Belonging
Signed and ratified, signed but not ratified,  signed or not ratified,  No information,  He has agreed to sign and ratify the organ in question, but also recognizes the competence of individual communications received and processed by the competent bodies.

Territorial organization

The territorial organization in the UK is complex and varied, as each country has its own constitutional system of geographical and administrative demarcation before the bond between them origins. Consequently, there is "no administrative unit in common between the members of the UK" Until the nineteenth century, few changes were made to these administrations, but since then there has been a constant evolution of its role and no change función. It happened uniform way the constituent nations, and the devolution of power over local government to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, makes it unlikely that future administrative changes are uniform.

The organization of local government in England is complex, because the distribution of roles varies according to local regulations. Local legislation is carried out by the British Parliament and the government of the United Kingdom, because England does not have a decentralized parliament. The upper level of the subdivisions of England are the nine regional offices gobierno. Since 2000, the London region has an elected assembly and a mayor, after the great support given to this proposal in the referendum 1998. London It was intended that other regions will also have its own regional assembly, but the rejection of this idea in a referendum in 2004 in the Northeast of England stopped reforma. Below the level of the region, London is made up of 32 municipalities and the rest of England has councils and district councils or unitary authorities. Councillors are elected by direct suffrage, by simple vote or bloque.

Local government in Scotland is divided into 32 areas of advice, which have a wide variation in both size and population. The cities of Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Dundee are areas of special counsel, as well as the Highland council area, which includes a third of Scotland's surface, but only just over 200,000 people. The power granted to local authorities is administered by elected councilors, who are currently 1222. Elections are conducted by single transferable vote, election block by three or four councilors. Each Council elects a General Manager or Coordinator to chair the Council meetings and to act as the representative of the area. Councillors are subject to a code of conduct imposed by the Standards Commission for Escocia. The organization representing local officials is the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) .

Since 1973, the local government in Northern Ireland is divided into 26 district councils where elections are held SNTV to elect representatives with limited services such as garbage collection and maintenance of parks and public places powers. However, the March 13, 2008, the executive proposed the creation of eleven new councils to replace the actual system and the upcoming local elections be postponed until 2011 to facilitate this proceso.

Finally, the local government in Wales consists of 22 unitary authorities, including the cities of Cardiff, Swansea and Newport which are unitary authorities independientes.79 Elections are held every four years to vote directo. The Local Government Association of Wales represents the interests of local authorities galesas.

Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies

The British Overseas Territories are fourteen dependent territories of the United Kingdom, but not form part of it. Mainly, it is sparsely populated small islands representing the vestiges of the former British Empire. Together, they represent an area of over 1,728,000 square kilometers and a population of approximately 260 000 personas. But one of them, the British Antarctic Territory, is recognized only by four other countries, signatories to the Treaty Antártico.

The dependencies of the British Crown is three semi-dependent territories of the monarch of the United Kingdom, but are not part of the country. Unlike overseas territories, legislation and other matters of local interest they correspond to a local legislature; Furthermore, international treaties and national standards are applied only if this assembly the aprueba. These units occupy about 779 square kilometers and have a population of more than 235,700 habitantes.

Geography

The total area of the UK is about 243,610 km² comprising the island of Great Britain and the northeastern part of the island of Ireland (Northern Ireland) and more islands pequeñas. The country is located between the Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea, 35 kilometers off the northwest coast of France, which is separated by the channel Mancha.

Britain lies between latitudes 49 ° and 59 ° N (the Shetland Islands extend nearly 61 ° N) and longitudes 8 ° W to 2 ° E. The Greenwich Observatory in London, is the defining point to the Greenwich meridian. When measured directly north-south, Britain is just over 1100 kilometers long and just under 500 kilometers at its widest. However, the greatest distance between two points on the island is 1350 kilometers between Land's End in Cornwall (near Penzance) and John o 'Groats in Caithness (near Thurso). Northern Ireland shares a land border of 360 km with the Republic of Irlanda.

England accounts for just over half the total area of the UK, with 130,410 square kilometers. Most of the country consists of lowlands with some hilly terrain in the northwest, where it is the Tees-Exe line between the mountains of Cumbria and the Pennines. The highest mountain in the region is Scafell Pike (978 meters) and is located within this area. The main rivers and estuaries in England are the Thames, Severn and the Humber.

Scotland represents less than a third of the total area of the UK, covering 78,772 square kilometers, this figure includes nearly eight hundred islands, most of which are located west and north of Britain, highlighting the Hebrides islands Orkney and Shetland. The topography of Scotland is distinguished by the Highland Boundary Fault, which traverses the Scottish mainland from Helensburgh to Stonehaven. The fault separates the two main Scottish regions: the highlands of the north and west and the lowlands of the south and east. The mountainous region contains most of the Highlands of Scotland, including Ben Nevis, with its 1343 meters, it is the highest point on the islands Británicas. lowlands, especially the narrow strip of land between the Firth of Clyde and the Firth of Forth known as the "Central Belt", are flatter and therein lies most of the Scottish communities, including Glasgow, the largest city in the region, and Edinburgh, the capital and political center of the country.

Wales takes up less than one tenth of the total area of the UK, covering only 20,758 square kilometers. Wales is mostly mountainous, while the south is less mountainous than the north and center. That's why the main industrial areas are in South Wales, consisting of the coastal cities of Cardiff, Swansea and Newport. The highest mountains are Snowdonia, where is the highest peak in the region: the Snowdon with 1085 meters. The fourteen (or fifteen) highest mountains in Wales exceed 914.4 meters (3000 feet) and is commonly known as the "Wales 3000's" 89 There are several islands stretching in front of more than 1200 km of coastline, largest of which is Anglesey (Ynys Môn), located northwest of the country.

Northern Ireland accounts for just 14,160 square kilometers and its territory is mostly mountainous. It is separated from the British Isles by the Irish Sea and North Channel. The highest peak in this region is the Slieve Donard 849 meters, located in the mountains of Mourne. In Northern Ireland lies Lough Neagh, with its approximately 388 square kilometers, is the largest water body in the United Kingdom.

Climate

The UK has a temperate climate and oceanic climate with abundant rainfall throughout the year. The temperature varies with the seasons but seldom drops below -10 ° C or rises above 35 ° C. The prevailing wind comes from the southwest, bringing wet and warm weather from the ocean Atlántico. The eastern part is more protected from the wind and therefore has a drier climate. Atlantic currents, warmed by the Gulf Stream make the winters are not so severe, especially in the west, where winters are wet. Summers are warmest in the south east of England, being closest to the European mainland part, and cooler as you move north. Snowfall occurs during the winter and spring, but rarely heavy snow falls in the lowlands.

London average climate parameters
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Annual
Average maximum temperature (°C)	6.7	7.1	9.9	12.6	16.3	19.6	21.7	21.4	18.8	15	10.1	7.7	13.9
Average minimum temperature (°C)	0.4	0.5	1.5	3.4	6.3	9.3	11.3	10.9	8.8	6.4	2.8	1.3	5.2
Total Precipitation (mm)	78	51	61	54	55	57	45	56	68	73	77	79	754
Sunshine hours	279	280	372	420	465	510	496	465	390	341	270	248	4536
Relative humidity (%)	81	76	69	64	62	60	60	62	67	73	78	82	69.5
[citation needed]

Flora and fauna

In most of Britain there is a temperate climate that receives high rainfall and average levels of sunshine. To the north, the weather gets colder and coniferous forests largely replaced the deciduous forests of the south.

There are some variations in the British weather, with some areas with subarctic conditions as in the Highlands of Scotland, Teasdale, and even subtropical in the Scilly Isles. Seasonal changes that occur throughout the archipelago condition the plants must cope with changes in the levels of sunlight, precipitation and temperature, and the risk of snow and frost in winter.

Within the island there are several ecosystems such as temperate forests, swamps, marshes, etc. Oak, elm, beech, ash, pine and birch are some of the most common trees in the woods Britannic.Previously, the British Isles were filled forest of deciduous trees and conifers, but for 2000s, only about 10% of the country was covered by forests, focusing in northeast Scotland and southeast England, largely due to uncontrolled logging and growth surroundings area urban areas is mainly covered by grass and plants Flores

The island of Great Britain, along with the rest of the known as the British Isles archipelago, has a typical, slightly diverse fauna of oceanic temperate climate when compared globally and similar to that of other countries of Northern Europe level.

Among the most abundant mammals in the country foxes, rabbits, deer, hedgehogs, mice, weasels and Musharraf. Like other islands in similar latitudes are included, there are few examples of reptiles and antibiotics. Around the country They have been discovered more than 21 000 species of insects and over 230 species of birds, some of which are threatened by hunting and the destruction of their habitat. major British rivers like the Thames, are the main source of water fauna of local ecosystems, both of which are home to several species of fish and birds acoustical.

Biodiversity declined severely during the last glaciation, and in a short time (in geological terms) was separated from the mainland by the formation of the English Channel.

The man chased the larger species that interfered with their activities (the wolf, brown bear and boars) to extinction on the island, though of course there are still domesticated forms like the dog and the pig. The boar was reintroduced posterior.

Since the mid-eighteenth century, Britain has undergone a major increase in industrialization and urbanization. A DEFRA study published in 2006 suggested that species of animals have become extinct in the UK during the twentieth century, which is about 100 times the rate of extinction of fondo. This has had a major impact on populations native animals, particularly patisseries, becoming increasingly scarce. Habitat loss has affected mainly the species of large mammals. However, some species have adapted to the urban environment in expansion, particularly foxes, rats, and other animals like the wood pigeon.

Economy

The UK economy is made up (in descending order of size) of the economies of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Based on market exchange rates, the UK is the world's fifth largest economy and the second largest in Europe after Germany, ahead of Francis.

The Industrial Revolution began in the UK, in a process where there was a high concentration of heavy industries in the country, such as shipbuilding, coal mining, steel production and the textile industry. The extent of the empire created a huge overseas market for British products, allowing the nation to dominate international trade in the nineteenth century. Later, as happened to other industrialized economies, coupled with economic decline after two world wars, the United Kingdom began to lose its competitive advantage and heavy industry declined. Although manufacturing remains an important part of the economy in 2003 represented only one-sixth of revenues país.

The automotive industry is an important part of the manufacturing sector, but has declined with the collapse of MG Rover Group and currently most of the industry is foreign-owned. The production of civilian aircraft and defense is led by BAE Systems, the largest defense contractor in the world, and by the European firm EADS, the owner of Airbus. Rolls-Royce is an important part of the global aerospace engines market. The chemical and pharmaceutical industry are important in the UK, since British companies Blameworthiness and Strangeness are the second and sixth largest pharmaceutical company in the world, respective.

However, in recent decades the service sector increased significantly and now produces about 73% of PIB. The service sector is dominated by financial services, especially banks and insurers. This makes London the world's largest financial center, since here are the headquarters of the London Stock Exchange, the London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange and Lloyd's of London; besides being the leader of the three "command centers" for the world economy (along with New York and Tokyo) also has the largest concentration of foreign bank branches in the world. In the last decade, a rival financial center in London has grown in the Docklands area, where the HSBC, the world's largest bank, Barclay, and relocated their headquarters. Many multinational companies are British-owned not have chosen London as the location for their European headquarters or foreign: an example is the US financial services firm Citigroup. Scotland's capital, Edinburgh, is also one of the major financial centers Europe and is home to the Royal Bank of Scotland Group, one of the largest banks in the world.

Tourism is very important for the British economy. With over 27 million tourists arriving in Argentina in 2004, the UK is ranked as the sixth major tourist destination in the mundo London, by a considerable margin, is the most visited city in the world with 15, 6 million visitors in 2006, ahead of Bangkok (10.4 million visitors) and Paris (9.7 million) . The creative industries accounted for 7% of GDP in 2005 and grew at an average annual rate of 6 % between 1997 and 2005.

In July 2007, the UK had a public debt of 35.5% of PIB. This increased to 56.8% of GDP in July 2009. The national currency is the pound sterling, represented by the symbol £. The Bank of England is the central bank, responsible for issuing currency, although banks in Scotland and Northern Ireland are entitled to issue their own banknotes. The pound is also used as a reserve currency by other governments and institutions, and is the third largest amount of currency reserves, after the US dollar and euro. The UK decided not to participate in the launch of the euro as a currency, and the former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has ruled out adopting the euro in the near future, arguing that the decision not to join the project was the best option for the country and for Europa. The previous government of Tony Blair pledged to hold a public referendum on whether the country would conduct the "five economic tests". In 2005, more than half of Britons (55%) were against adopting the euro as currency, while only 30% were favor.

The January 23, 2009, figures from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that the UK economy was officially in recession for the first time since 1991. It was reported in the last quarter of 2008 when the economy fell into a recession that was accompanied by the rising unemployment, which rose from 5.2% in May 2008 to 7.6% in May 2009. The unemployment rate for adults aged 18-24 years increased from 11.9% to 17.3% in the same period.

The relative poverty line in the UK is commonly defined below 60% of average income. Between 2007 and 2008, 13.5 million people, or 22% of the population living below this line. This is one of the highest levels of relative poverty among members of the Union Europe. After taking into account housing costs, showed that in the same period 4 million children, 31% of the total, lived in households they were below the poverty line. This represents a decrease of 400,000 children compared to the period between 1998 and 1999.

Infrastructures

Transport

The main British roads form a network of 46,904 kilometers, of which more than 3520 km of motorways. In addition, there are about 213,750 kilometers of roads sedimentation. The rail network, with 16,116 kilometers in Britain and 303 kilometers in Northern Ireland, daily transports more than 18,000 passenger trains and 1,000 freight trains. Urban rail networks are well developed in London and other major cities. They came to me there is more than 48,000 km of railways throughout the country, but most fell between 1955 and 1975, largely following a report by government consultant Richard Leeching in the mid-1960s (known as the Leeching Axe). Currently they considered new plans to build new high-speed lines by 2025.

The Highways Agency is an executive agency responsible for roads and motorways in England apart from the privately M6 Toll.124 The Department of Transportation says that traffic congestion is one of the most serious problems in transport and if not is controlled, by 2025 it could cost England more than 22 000 million pounds sisterliness According to Eddington 2006 report by the British government, congestion is in danger of harming the economy, unless it is counteracted with tolls and expansion of the network of 127 transport.

Ways and means of transport of Scotland are the responsibility of the Department of Transport Local Government, Transport Scotland being the government agency in charge of maintaining the road and rail networks pampas The Scottish railway network has about 340 stations and 3000 kilometers of track and transports more than 62 million passengers each año. In 2008, the Scottish government established investment plans for the next 20 years, with priorities to include a new bridge on the road to Forth and the electrification of the network Ferrari.

The London Heath row Airport, located 24 km west of the capital, is the busiest airport in the UK and has the highest level of international passenger traffic in the mundo also is the base of operations for airlines as British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and bmi.

Media

Television is the primary means of communication in the UK. The main national character strings are: BBC One, BBC Two, ITV1, Channel 4 and Five. In Wales, S4C, Channel Four Wales, replaces Channel 4, broadcast in Welsh in prime time. The rest of the time repeats of Channel 4 programming in English.

The BBC is the leading issuer of public nature of the UK and the largest and oldest broadcaster mundo operates several television channels and radio stations in the country and abroad. The international service of BBC TV, BBC World News, is broadcast worldwide and international radio service, BBC World Service broadcasts in thirty-three languages.

As for radio, the main service is BBC Radio that features ten national stations, among which are the two highest popularity: BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 2; and about forty regional stations. There are also language services within British borders, as BBC Radio Cyrus in Welsh and BBC Radio Nan Galilean in Scottish Gaelic; some programs from BBC Radio Ulster are issued in Northern Ireland for the Irish population. There are also hundreds of private stations local.

Internet is one of the most important means of communication in the country, and that has had a large increase from the past decade, so that with 41,817,847 users, is the seventh country with the largest number of Internet users in the Mundo. The Internet domain for the United Kingdom's . The most popular website terminated ".UK" is the British version of Google, followed by the page BBC.

The Sun is the largest national circulation newspaper, with 3.1 million copies daily, capturing about a quarter of Mercado. Its sister publication, News of the World was the largest circulation weekly newspaper, canceled after hacking scandal which is usually focused on stories celebrates. The Daily Telegraph, a newspaper in right, is considered the newspaper of "quality" best-selling pass. The Guardian newspaper is another "quality", although more liberal trend ; Financial Times is the main financial newspaper in the country, characterized by sheets printed on salmon.

Printed from 1737, The News Letter from Belfast, is the oldest newspaper still in circulation English. One of his Northern Irish competitors, The Irish News, has been rated as the best regional newspaper in the UK in several newspapers occasions addition, some British publications have international movement, among them the magazine The Economist and Nature.

Energy

The electricity consumption in the country amounted to 345,800 million kWh per year, being the 12th largest consumer of electricity in the world. However, produces 1.54 million barrels of oil and 69.9 million cubic meters of natural gas annuals Currently, most of the electricity comes from non-renewable sources, mainly coal and oil. This has prompted the government to start implementing measures to reduce dependence on fossil fuels for energy production and is intended that by 2020 40% of electricity from alternative sources such as solar, wind and materialization.

The UK has a small coal reserve along with significant reserves, but continuing decline, natural gas and petroleum have been identified about 400 million tons of coal in the pampas In 2004, total coal consumption (including imports) was 61 million tons, 142 allowing the country self-sufficient in coal for just 6.5 years, although current levels of extraction, the period increases to 20 Amos. to the generation of an alternative electricity with coal is underground coal classification (GCS). GCS is a system that injects steam and oxygen into a well, where gas is extracted coal and pushes the gas mixture to the surface (a method of extracting coal with potentially lower emissions of carbon). After identification of land areas that have the potential for GCS, gas reserves are estimated between 7 billion and 16 billion nonelastic Based on current coal consumption in the country, these volumes represent reserves that could last between 200 and 400 years.

Education

Education in the UK is a decentralized matter, as each constituent nation has its own education system. Education in England is the responsibility of the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, although administration and funding of state schools correspond to locales.145 Universality authorities in education in England and Wales was introduced in 1870 for the and in 1900 for primary education secondarily currently education, education is compulsory from age five to sixteen years old. Most children are educated in schools in the state sector, only a small portion studying in special schools, primarily for academic skills. State schools are allowed to select pupils according to intelligence and academic ability can achieve comparable with the most selective private schools results: in 2006, ten schools better academic performance, two were state grammar schools. Despite a fall in actual numbers, the proportion of children in England attending private schools has increased by more than 7% .147 However, more than half of the students from leading universities, Cambridge and Oxford, he attended statelessness to schools England has some of the best universities worldwide; Cambridge University, Oxford University, Imperial College London and University College London are ranked within the top ten Raymundo According to the TIMES (Trends in International Mathematics and Science), students in England They are the best seventh in mathematics and sixth in science. The results place the English pupils ahead of other European countries, including Germany and the countries Scandinavian.

Education in Scotland is the responsibility of the Ministry of Education and Learning, with the administration and funding of state schools run by local authorities. Two non-departmental public bodies have key roles in Scottish education: the Scottish Authority Calcification and Escherichia Learning and Teaching Education became mandatory in Scotland in 1496,153 The proportion of children attending private schools is just 4% , but it has been slowly increasing in recent years.154 The Scottish students attending Scottish universities do not pay tuition or courses for a graduate, as all these fees were abolished in 2001. The monetary contribution by universities student graduates was abolished in 2008,155

Education in Northern Ireland is administered by the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Employment and Learning, although responsibility locally is five school boards that cover specific geographical areas. The Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CECA) is the body responsible for advising the government on what should be taught in schools in Northern Ireland, monitoring standards and awarding tuberculosis

The National Assembly for Wales has responsibility for education in this country. A significant number of Welsh students learn, either entirely or largely in the Welsh language; lessons in Welsh are compulsory for all pupils up to the age of 16 asbestos. There are plans to increase the number of secondary schools who teach Welsh as part of the policy to achieve a fully bilingual Wales.

Demography

Every ten years a census is conducted simultaneously in all regions of the United Unicode The National Bureau of Statistics is responsible for collecting data for England and Wales, whereas in Scotland and Northern Ireland responsible for carrying out the Censuses are the General Register Office and the Agency for Statistics and Research, respective

In the most recent census in 2001, the total UK population was 58,789,194 people, the third largest in the fifth largest in the Commonwealth and the twenty-first in the world European Union. In mid-2008, it was estimated that it had grown to 61.383 million habitualness In 2008, the natural population growth exceeded net migration as the main contributor to population growth, the first time this has happened since 1998,161 Between 2001 and 2008, the population increased at an average annual rate of 0.5%. This compares with 0.3% annually in the period 1991-2001 and 0.2% in the decade from 1981 to 1991,161 Published in 2008, the population estimate for 2007 revealed that, for the first time, the United Kingdom was home to more people of retirement age than children under 16 asbestos

In mid-2008, the total of about 61 million Britons, England's population was estimated at 51,383,000 habitualness Thus England is one of the most densely populated countries in the world with 383 inhabitants per square kilometer, 163 with a particular concentration in London and the South East pampas estimates put the same period the population of Scotland at 5.17 million, 2.99 million of Wales and Northern Ireland at 1.78 million 161 with much lower population densities than England. Compared to the 383 British inhabitants per square kilometer, the corresponding figures were 142 h / km² in Wales, 125 h / km² for Northern Ireland and only 65 h / km² for Escherichia Northern Ireland had the fastest growing population in terms of percentage of all four constituent countries United Unicode.

That same year, the average fertility rate across the UK was 1.96 children per murmurer While a rising birth rate contributes to the growth of the current population, still remains considerably below the 1964 baby boom, where each woman had 2.95 children on average, but more than 166 record low in 2001 of 1.63 children per murmurer In 2008, Scotland had the lowest fertility rate with only 1.8 children per woman, while Northern Ireland had the highest with 2.11 children.

Languages

The UK has no official language, but the most prevalent is English, a West Germanic language descended from Anglo, which has a large number of loans from Old Norse, Norman French and Latin. Due largely to the expansion of the British Empire, the English language spread throughout the world and became the international language of business as well as the second most widespread language in the Raymundo

The Scotsman (Allan), a language related to English that also descends from the Middle English spoken in northeast England, is recognized at the level European There are also four Celtic languages in use: Welsh, Irish, Scottish Gaelic and Cornish. In the 2001 census, more than a fifth of the population of Wales said they could speak Welsh (21%) 169 170 In addition, it is estimated that about 200,000 Welsh speakers live in Interrelate

The 2001 census in Northern Ireland showed that 167,487 people (10.4% of the population) had "some knowledge of Irish", almost exclusively in the Catholic and nationalist population. Over 92,000 people in Scotland (just under 2% of the population) had some understanding of Gaelic, including 72% of the inhabitants of the Hebrides Exterior is increasing the number of schools teaching in Welsh, Scottish Gaelic and Switzerland These languages are also spoken by small groups around the world; Nova Scotia, Canada Irish is spoken, while there is a population that speaks Welsh in Patagonia Argentina.

Generally, it is mandatory for British students study a second language at some point in their school career: at the age of 14 years in England, 175 and up to age 16 in Scotland. French and German are the two most studied languages in England and Scotland. In Wales, all pupils of 16 must have learned Welsh as a second language

Religion

The Act of Union (1707) that led to the formation of the United Kingdom said that Protestantism would remain as well as a link between church and state remains until the XXI century. Thus, Christianity is the religion with the most followers, followed by Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism and Judaism, according to data obtained in the census of 2001.85

In the same census, 71.6% of respondents said that Christianity was their religion, although  surveys employ a "more specific" question tend to find lower rates; such is the case Tear fund Study 2007, which revealed that 53% identified themselves as Christians, and British Social Attitudes Survey 2007, which found that 47.5% was almost a . However, Tear fund study showed that only one in ten Britons actually attend church weekly

The British Social Attitudes Survey 2007, covering England, Wales and Scotland, but not Northern Ireland, indicated that 20.87% of the population were part of the Church of England, 10.25% non-denominational Christians, Catholics 9.01%, 2.81% Presbyterians (Church of Scotland), Methodists 1.88%, 0.88% and 2.11% Christian Baptists otherwise. Among other religions, Muslims occupied 3.30%, 1.37% Hindus, Jews 0.43%, the stasis 0.37% and the followers of other religions 0.35%. A large proportion said no religion (45.67%). 

In the 2001 census, 9.1 million people (15% of the population) claimed to be atheists, with more than 4.3 million people (7%) who indicated no religious preference in nonspecific. There is a disparity between the figures for those who identify with a particular religion and for those proclaiming a belief in a god: a Euro barometer survey conducted in 2005 showed that 38% of respondents believe that "there is a God", 40% believe "There is some sort of spirit or life force" and 20% said "not think there is any sort of spirit, God or life force" . Druidism since 2010 is recognized as an official religion in the UK and as a the oldest in the country.

Health

Like education, health care is a decentralized matter, so England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales have their own system of health care, along with alternative therapies, holistic and complementary. The National Health Service (NHS) (National Health Service) is the agency responsible for providing health care to all permanent residents of the United Kingdom for free. In 2000, the World Health Organization placed the National Health Service as the best fifteenth in Europe in the eighteenth and Raymundo.

In addition to the National Health Service, there are several agencies responsible for health care that are administered by the government, such as the General Medical Council and the Nursing and Midwifery Council while others correspond to the private sector, such as the Royal Colleges. However, politics and the administration of the National Health Service corresponding to each constituent nation. Each National Health Service has different policies and priorities, resulting in sharp contrasts between one and 188 trotter.

Since 1979, the cost of medical services have increased significantly, approaching the average expenditure of the Union Europea.189 The UK spends about 8.4% of its GDP on health care, which is 0.5 % below the average of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and about 1% below the EU average.

Culture

The culture of the United Kingdom, also called "British culture" can be described as the legacy of the history of an island developed country, a great power and as a result of the political union of four countries, each retaining their distinctive traditions, customs and symbolism. As a result of the dominance of the British Empire, the influence of British culture can be seen in the language, traditions, customs and legal systems of many of its former colonies such as Canada, Australia, India and the United States.

Art and culture have historically been influenced by ideology occidental.192 Since the expansion of the British Empire, the experience of military, political and economic power led to a technique, unique taste and sensibility of artists from the United Unicode British They used his art "to illustrate their knowledge and lead the natural world," while the settlers in North America, Australasia and South Africa "embarked on the search for a distinctive and artistic expression appropriate to their national identity" The empire was .193 "in the center rather than at the margins, in the history of British art" and the visual arts of the Victorian era have been instrumental in building, celebration and expression of Brutishness.

Art

UK art encompasses all art forms undertaken since the country's founding to the present. However, much of the so-called British art comes from before 1707, Stonehenge being the oldest art form in the country, dating from 2500. C.195 Since then, art in the territory covered by the UK was developed over the centuries, and by the time of the union of the four nations, each already had a defined artistic tradition.

The period of greatest growth for British arts was during the Empire, when Britain stood at the head of several artistic movements that besides being historical, biblical and mythological times, they expressed moments of everyday life that could transcend the art.  And with imperial expansion artists were able to take influences from the cultures of the countries under British domain such as India, USA, etc., while the British left their mark works and legacy within artists colony. During the twentieth century British art began to expand to the currents of modern and contemporary art, such as Post-Impressionism, Cubism and impressionism.

Currently, there are several art institutions in the UK, which have emerged several prominent artists and artistic movements within their field. Among these are the Royal Academy, the Royal College of Art, the Royal Society of Arts and the Tate. In addition, within its borders are several museums and galleries of international renown, such as the British Museum, the National Gallery, the National Gallery of Scotland, the Science Museum and the Museum of Yorkshire are located, among others.

Architecture

British architecture is characterized by the eclectic combination of various architectural styles, ranging from those that were before the creation of the country as Roman architecture, to contemporary architecture XXI.199 century Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales developed styles unique architectural and played important roles in the history of sundial Although there are prehistoric and classical structures in the British Isles architecture, history of British architecture begins with the first Anglo churches, built shortly after the arrival of Augustine of Canterbury Britain in the year 597 199 From the twelfth century, Norman architecture spread in Britain and Ireland, in the form of castles and churches to help enforce the Norman authority in their dominion The English Gothic architecture, which flourished between 1189 and 1520, was brought from France, but quickly developed its own characteristically.

Across the country, the secular medieval architecture was developed in the form of castles, most of them located near the border between England and Scotland, dating from the sixteenth century, the time of the wars of independence Escocia.200 The invention of firearms and cannon made useless to the castles and the English Renaissance gave way to the development of new artistic styles for domestic architecture: the Tudor style and the English Baroque palladianismo.200 Georgian and neoclassical architecture advanced after Scottish Enlightenment and from the 1930s were more modernist styles. However, the fight for the preservation of old structures and the strength of the traditionalist movement has gained momentum, in addition to being supported by public figures such as Charles of Wales

Cinema

The UK was a strong influence on the development of cinema, with the Paling Studios claiming the title of being the oldest studios in the world. Despite a history of important and successful productions this industry is characterized by an ongoing debate about its identity and the influences of American and European cinema. The British market is very small for the British film industry can successfully produce Hollywood-style blockbusters for a period ostentation Compared with the US, the British film industry has not been able to produce commercially successful internationally; so it maintains a complex and divided attitude toward Hollywood. However, note that eight of the top ten films of all time have some British dimension, whether historical, cultural or creative: Titanic, two episodes of The Lord of the Rings, two of the trilogy of Pirates of the Caribbean three films in the saga of Harry Potter.

Literature

British literature refers to literature associated with the United Kingdom, Isle of Man and the Channel Islands as well as to the literature of England, Wales and Scotland prior to the formation of the country. Most of the works of British literature was written in the English language. The UK publishes nearly 206 000 books each year, making it the largest publisher of books in the Raymundo Scotland's capital, Edinburgh, was declared "City of Literature" by UNESCO.205

English poet and playwright William Shakespeare is widely regarded as the greatest playwright of all imposition 207 208 Among the most renowned English writers are Geoffrey Chaucer (XIV century), Thomas Malory (XV century), Thomas More (XVI century ) and John Milton (XVII century). A Samuel Richardson, writer of the eighteenth century, is credited with the invention of the epistolary novel, along with Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe creator. In the nineteenth century, they followed more representatives of British literature: the innovative Jane Austen, the Gothic novelist Mary Shelley, author of children's stories Lewis Carroll, the Emily, Charlotte and Anne Bronte sisters, the social activist Charles Dickens, the naturalist Thomas Hardy, the visionary poet William Blake, the Romantic poet William Wordsworth and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle creator of Sherlock Holmes.

The most famous writers of the twentieth century include the science fiction novelist HG Wells, writers of children's classics Rudyard Kipling and AA Milne, the controversial DH Lawrence, the modernist Virginia Woolf, Evelyn Waugh's satirical, the novelist George Orwell, the popular novelist Graham Greene, the detective novelist Agatha Christie, James Bond creator Ian Fleming, fantasy writers JRR Tolkien, CS Lewis and JK Rowling recently; and the poets Ted Hughes and John Betjeman.

Science and Technology

Since its founding, the United Kingdom has been at the forefront of scientific and technological advances, as well as in research and development. The Royal Society is the oldest scientific society in the UK, and one of the oldest in the world. During its 300 year history, has been tasked to promote, protect and disseminate knowledge and science in the country and the world entertainer Within this society several scientists who contributed to the advancement of their respective fields of knowledge involved ; among these are: Robert Boyle, John Wallis, Isaac Newton, Robert Hooke, Thomas Willis, among Ostrogoth Facilities Council for Science and Technology is one of the bodies responsible for promoting and supporting scientific research in the country. During 2008 and 2009, the council invested more than US $ 1200 million to provide resources to the various institutes and scientific societies Britannica.

As a leading country of the Industrial Revolution, the inventors of the United Kingdom gave him the world several innovations, notably in areas such as textiles, the steam engine, railways and civil engineering. Within this period are the inventors George Stephenson, James Watt and Robert Stephenson. Since then, British inventions and inventors have been prominent and numerous. These are innovative new Alan Turing, Alexander Graham Bell, John Logie Baird, Frank Whittle, Charles Babbage, Alexander Fleming, among many Ostrogoth In 2007, the UK had 79,855 patents in force, the seventh country with the highest number of them.

Philosophy

The UK is famous for the tradition of "British Empiricism", a branch of the philosophy of knowledge that states that the only valid knowledge is that which is verified by experience; and "Scottish Philosophy" which is sometimes called the "Scottish School of Common Sense". The most famous philosophers of British Empiricism are John Locke, George Berkeley and David Hume, while Dual Stewart, Thomas Reid and William Hamilton were major exponents of the Scottish school of common sense. Britain is also notable for a theory of moral philosophy, Utilitarianism, first used by Jeremy Bentham and later by John Stuart Mill, in his homonyms work Utilitarianism. Other eminent philosophers from the UK and the states that preceded it include Duns Scots, John Wilburn, Mary Wollstonecraft, Francis Bacon, Adam Smith, Thomas Hobbes, William of Hammock, Bertrand Russell and Alfred Jules Yer.

Music

There are several very popular musical styles in the UK, from the folk music of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, to heavy metal. Among British composers of classical music are most notable: William Byrd, Henry Purcell, Edward Elgar, Gustav Holst, Arthur Sullivan (best known for working with librettist WS Gilbert), Ralph Vaughan Williams and Benjamin Britten, pioneer of modern opera British. Peter Maxwell Davies is one of the most outstanding in the country and the current master of music queen living composers. Also here are several symphony orchestras and choirs internationally renowned as the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus of the London Symphony Orchestra. The baroque composer George Fried rich Handel, although born in Germany, won the Britannica citizenship and some of his best works, such as The Messiah, were written in isinglass.

The most prominent Britons who have influenced popular music of the last fifty years include The Beatles, Queen, Elton John, Bee Gees, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and The Rolling Stones, all with sales exceeding two hundred million records All Raymundo. In addition, The Beatles hold the record for music sales, with more than a billion albums sold 215,216 internationalize level A large number of British cities are known for its music scene: statistically, Liverpool artists are those who are most successful in the UK Singles Chart.226 list For his part, Glasgow's contribution to the music scene was recognized in 2008 when he was named by UNESCO as "City of Music" , a title shared with Bologna, Seville and Ghent

Sport

Sport is a key element of British culture. Lots of sports were created in the UK, including football, rugby, tennis and golf, the first being the most popular sport in the country. Internationally, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland compete separately in most team sports (although Northern Ireland in many sports, such as rugby or golf, continuously connected to the rest of the island of Ireland) and in the Commonwealth Games. However, in some sports the United Kingdom participates as one team, as in the concessional

In the Olympics, the United Kingdom also participates as a single team, represented by the National Olympic Committee of the United Kingdom, the British Olympic Association. The country has participated in every edition of the Olympic Games of the modern era and has hosted three editions of 1908, where it stood at the first place in the medal, 1948, 2012, made in Laundress.

It is claimed that cricket was invented in England (although recent research suggests that actually originated in Belgium) 236 and England controlled the Cricket Board of England and Wales, 237 is the only national UK team with status test cricket. Members of the team are Welsh and English nationality, unlike the selections of other sports such as football and rugby. Some Northern Irish and Scots have played for England because their national teams do not have status of test cricket. All constituent nations have competed in the Cricket World Cup, with England reaching the final in more than three occasions.

As with other team sports, rugby England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland compete as separate countries the various international competitions, but with the difference that makes Northern Ireland together with the Republic of Ireland, so there is an Irish rugby team representing the whole island. However, every four years the British-Irish Lions team composed of players from around the UK plus Ireland, make a tour around the world. While the England national rugby union team won the championship of the 2003 Rugby World Cup, the best performance of Wales has been a third, a fourth-place Scotland and Ireland has reached reach the quarterfinals.

A variant of rugby, rugby league, rugby also known as 13, is practiced throughout the country, but in the north of England (where it originated) is the most important in many areas, especially in Yorkshire Sport, Cumbria and Lancashire, but also has offices in London and South Wales. Previously a selection of UK represented the country in international competitions, but since 2008 every nation has its own rugby team league.238 In 2013, the UK will host the Rugby League World Cup for the fifth occasional.

The tennis was invented in the city of Birmingham between 1859 and 1865. Since 1877, it takes place every summer at Wimbledon (London) Wimbledon Championships, which is the third Grand Slam of the year. A level of achievement, the UK has reached the Davis Cup 9 times, the last being that achieved in 1936, and has reached the Fed Cup runner-up in four occasions.

Golf is the sixth most popular sport in the country, in terms of participation. Although The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, in Scotland, is the birthplace of the sport, the oldest golf course in the world is Mussel burgh Links' Old Golf Course.242 The shiny (or Camacho) is a very popular sport region in the Scottish Highlands, sometimes attracting thousands of spectators from across the nation, especially to see the end of the main tournament, the Cora Anachronism.

As for the motor, the UK is one of the countries most involved in this sport, since most of the F1 teams are based in the country and British drivers have won more titles than any other group. Silver stone Circuit is organized annually by the British Grand Prix, valid for the Formula 1 car Other events organized in the country are the British Touring Car Championship and a date from the World Rally Championship. In addition, the UK is home to several major Formula 1 teams, prominent among them multiple champions builders and pilots McLaren, Williams F1, Lotus F1 and Red Bull Racing. In the case of the latter, despite the Austrian-born brand beverages team owner, it has its headquarters in the UK, due to the acquisition of the franchise that made the former Jaguar F1 team to enter the Championship Formula 1 World Championship.

Other nationally popular sports include horse racing and hockey. Particularly in Northern Ireland, especially within the Catholic population, they are popular Gaelic football and hurling, both governed by the Gaelic Athletic Association.