Judicial system

The United Kingdom does not have a single legal system. Today the UK has three distinct systems of law: English law, Northern Ireland law and Scots law.

The courts of England and Wales are headed by the Senior Courts of England and Wales, consisting of the Court of Appeal, the High Court of Justice (for civil cases) and the Crown Court (for criminal cases). The Supreme Court is the highest court in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland and any decision it makes is binding on every other court in the same jurisdiction.

Scots law applies in Scotland. The chief courts are the Court of Session, for civil cases, and the High Court of Justiciary, for criminal cases. The Scots legal system is unique in having three possible verdicts for a criminal trial: "guilty", "not guilty" and "not proven". Both "not guilty" and "not proven" result in an acquittal with no possibility of retrial.

The UK is a developed country and has the world's sixth-largest economy by nominal GDP and seventh-largest economy by purchasing power parity. It was the world's first industrialised country and the world's foremost power during the 19th and early 20th centuries. The UK remains a great power with leading economic, cultural, military, scientific and political influence.

Labour and Conservative Parties

The Conservative and Labour parties are the two dominant political parties in the British system. Over the years, the two parties have modified their policy positions on many issues, to the point that they share similar views in such areas as national defense. However, the two parties continue to differ on many issues.

Conservative Party (1834), byname Tories, promotes private property and enterprise, the maintenance of a strong military, and the preservation of traditional cultural values and institutions.

Labour Party (1900) promotes an active role for the state in the creation of economic prosperity and in the provision of social services. Its members support social justice (fairness for all people) and strong communities. One of Labour’s most important achievements was setting up the National Health Service (NHS).

Economy and Taxes

Although the Labour Party, under former Prime Minister Tony Blair in the 1990s, stepped away from the socialist policies of earlier times, it differs with the Conservative Party on economics and taxes. The Labour Party supports cutting government office expenditures, as well as spending on consulting and marketing. The party also favors spending to modernize Britain’s infrastructure and to support business in creating new jobs. Labour’s platform also favors what it describes as “fair tax increases.” Taxes include a tax on bankers’ bonuses and a new tax on earnings that exceed £150,000 a year. The Conservative Party, in contrast, favors broader cuts in government spending, including a 5 percent cut in salaries for government ministers. It also favors cuts in Britain’s corporation tax.

Education

The Conservative Party’s position calls for allowing parents, charities and private firms to create their own schools as a means to increasing the variety of schools from which parents can choose. Labour, meanwhile, proposes allowing parents to use takeovers to place new management teams in failing schools. The Conservatives support reforming Britain’s national curriculum and increasing education funding for disadvantaged children. Labour supports broader increases in education spending, including an expansion in free nursery care.

Environment

Both parties express support for a “greener” Britain. Labour calls for achieving 40 percent low-carbon electricity by 2020 and creating 400,000 so-called green jobs by 2015. The Conservatives, meanwhile advocated less waste, expanded wind and water power, sustainable water management and more incentives to recycle. Labour also advocates banning disposing of recyclable and biodegradable materials in landfills.

Health Care

Both parties express support for Britain’s National Health Service. The two parties’ policy documents both pledge increased funding for the NHS, but also promise different reforms in health care. The Conservatives support greater transparency by allowing online access to NHS performance data. They also favor expanded patient choice and allowing patients to rate doctors and hospitals. The Labour Party advocates expanded diagnostic testing and more preventive checkups for people over the age of 40. The Labour advocates a maximum of an 18-week wait for treatment or allowing a patient to seek private care at NHS expense.