The uk’s geographical description, economy and political system

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK, or Britain) is a sovereign statelocated off the northwestern coast ofcontinental Europe. The United Kingdom is made of four countries: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Their capitals are London, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Belfast respectively. Great Britain consists of England, Scotland and Wales and does not include Northern Ireland. But in everyday speech “Great Britain” is used in the meaning of the “United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland”. The capital of the UK is London.

It is an island country, spanning anarchipelagoincludingGreat Britain, the northeastern part ofIreland, and many small islands.Northern Irelandis the only part of the UKwith a land border, sharing it with theRepublic of Ireland. Apart from this land border, the UK is surrounded by theAtlantic Ocean, theNorth Seaand theIrish Sea. The largest island, Great Britain, is linked toFranceby the EnglishChannel(La Manch).

The surface of the British Isles varies very much. The north of Scotland is mountainous and is called Highlands. The south, which has beautiful valleys and plains, is called Lowlands. Mountains are not very high. Ben Nevis in Scotland is the highest mountain (1343 m). There are a lot of rivers in Great Britain, but they are not very long. The Severn is the longest river, while the Thames is the deepest and the most important one.

The UK is highly developed industrial country. It produces and exports machinery, electronics, and textile. One of the chief industries of the country is shipbuilding.

London is Europe's largest financial centreand one of the world's three largest financial centres alongsideNew YorkandTokyo.

The UK is a nuclear powerand has the fourth highestdefense spendingin the world. It is aMember Stateof theEuropean Union, holds a permanent seat on theUnited Nations Security Council, and is a member of theCommonwealth of Nations,G8,NATO, and theWorld Trade Organization.

The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy. This means that it is governed by the Parliament and the Queen is Head of State. The Queen is Elizabeth II. The official London residence of Queen is Buckingham Palace.

The supreme legislative power is vested in the Parliament, which sits for 5 years unless sooner dissolved. The Parliament of the United Kingdomthat meets in thePalace of Westminsterhas two chambers: an electedHouse of Commonsand an appointedHouse of Lords.

The executive power of the Crown is exercised by the Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister, who is also the head of the government.Prime Minister, normally the head of the party commanding a majority in the House of Commons, is appointed by the Sovereign. The official office of Prime Minister is Downing Street, 10, London.

The UK's three major political partiesare theLabour Party, the Liberal Party and the Conservative Party (the Tory).