1. Judicial System

The United Kingdom does not have a single body of law applicable throughout the realm. Scotland has its own distinctive system and courts; in Northern Ireland, certain spheres of law differ in substance from those operating in England and Wales. A feature common to all UK legal systems, however—and one that distinguishes them from many continental systems—is the absence of a complete code, since legislation and unwritten or common law are all part of the "constitution."

The main civil courts in England and Wales are 218 county courts for small cases and the High Court, which is divided into the chancery division, the family division, and the Queen's Bench division (including the maritime and commercial courts), for the more important cases. Appeals from the county courts may also be heard in the High Court, though the more important ones come before the Court of Appeal; a few appeals are heard before the House of Lords, which is the ultimate court of appeal for civil cases throughout the United Kingdom. In Scotland, civil cases are heard at the sheriff courts (corresponding roughly to the English county courts) and in the Outer House of the Court of Session, which is the supreme civil court in Scotland; appeals are heard by the Inner House of the Court of Session. Trial by jury in civil cases is common in Scotland but rare in the rest of the United Kingdom.

Criminal courts in England and Wales include magistrates' courts, which try less serious offenses (some 96% of all criminal cases) and consist most often of three unpaid magistrates known as justices of the peace, and 78 centers of the Crown Court, presided over by a bench of justices or, in the most serious cases, by a High Court judge sitting alone. All contested cases receive a jury trial. Cases involving persons under 17 years of age are heard by justices of the peace in specially constituted juvenile courts. Appeals may be heard successively by the Crown Court, the High Court, the Court of Criminal Appeal, and in certain cases by the House of Lords. In Scotland, minor criminal cases are tried without jury in the sheriff courts and district courts, and more serious cases with a jury in the sheriff courts. The supreme criminal court is the High Court of Justiciary, where cases are heard by a judge sitting with a jury; this is also the ultimate appeals court.

All criminal trials are held in open court. In England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, 12-citizen juries must unanimously decide the verdict unless, with no more than two jurors dissenting, the judge directs them to return a majority verdict. Scottish juries of 15 persons are permitted to reach a majority decision and, if warranted, a verdict of "not proven." Among temporary emergency measures passed with the aim of controlling terrorism in Northern Ireland are those empowering ministers to order the search, arrest, and detention of suspected terrorists and permitting juryless trials for terrorist acts in Northern Ireland.

Central responsibility for the administration of the judicial system lies with the lord chancellor (who heads the judiciary and also serves as a cabinet minister and as speaker of the House of Lords) and the home secretary (and the secretaries of state for Scotland and for Northern Ireland). Judges are appointed by the crown, on the advice of the prime minister, lord chancellor, or the appropriate cabinet ministries.

The United Kingdom accepts the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice with reservations.

3) the UK Youth Parliament 

UKYP is run by young people for young people. We provide a unique platform that enables young people to use their energy and passion to change the world for the better. Having engaged hundreds of thousands of 11-18 year olds over the last ten years, UKYP gives the young people of the UK a powerful voice which is heard and listened to by local and national government, providers of services for young people and other agencies who have an interest in the views and needs of young people.

How does UKYP work? The UK Youth Parliament has over 600 representatives (369 seats for elected MYPs (Members of Youth Parliament) and over 230 Deputy MYPs, all aged 11-18. MYPs are usually elected in annual youth elections throughout the UK. Any young person aged 11-18 can stand or vote. In the past two years one million young people have voted in UK Youth Parliament elections.  Once elected MYPs organise events and projects, run campaigns and influence decision makers on the issues which matter most to young people. All MYPs have the opportunity to meet once a year at the UK Youth Parliament Annual Sitting.

Youth organizations in Great Britain

Youth and youth movement have become important factors in the life of the country. Numerous youth organizations have been formed since the Second World War, uniting young people from all classes and sections of the population. There are about 60 youth organizations in Great Britain. Youth Council, which represents the youth of the country both nationally and internationally. All youth organizations can be divided into three large groups: 1. non-political organizations; 2. youth organizations associated with political parties; 3. youth organizations controlled by religious bodies. The two largest non-political youth organizations are the associations of the Boy Scouts and the Girl Guides. There are about 1300000 boys and girls in them. The membership is voluntary. The Scout Association was formed in 1908 by General Baden Powell. His idea was to train boys in mapping, signaling, knotting, first aid and all the skills that would arise from camping and outdoor activities. Most important of all for a Scout was to make a promise that he would do his best to do his duty to. God and the Queen, to help other people and to obey the Scout Law. The Boy Scouts had a left-handed handshake, a special badge and the motto “Be Prepared”. The Scout Law embraces “honour, obedience, cheerfulness, thrift and cleanliness in thought and deed. The Scout movement was intended for boys from 11 to 14 (15), but in 1916 Baden Powell introduced a programme for younger people. He called them Wolf Cubs. They had special uniforms, badges, a special training system and the motto “Do your best!”. The Wolf Cub pack is based on Kipling’s “Jungle Book” about learning to survive. The Girl Guides Association was founded by Baden Pawell in 1910. It’s divided into three sections: Brownies (from 7.5 to 11), Guides (from 11 to 16), Rangers (from 16 to 21). The programme of training is planned to develop intelligence and practical skills including cookery, needlework, childcare. Like a Scout a Girl Guide must be a friend to animals. The Girl Guides Association has extensive international links. There are some other non-political organizations: the Combined Cadet Force, Sea Cadet Corps, the Woodcraft Folk, the Youth Hostels Association, the National Federation of Young Farmers Clubs, Greenpeace. Youth Organization Greenpeace deals with most urgent ecological problems. It protests against nuclear weapon tests, sea and soil pollution, etc. Sport clubs are characteristic youth organizations in the UK. They unite people who are interested in baseball, football, golf, etc. There also exist interest clubs. You can attend any club: From theatre to bird-watching clubs. By the way, birdwatching clubs are very popular in Great Britain. There are several youth organizations associated with political parties. The Youth Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (YCND) unites young people and organizes mass rallies and meetings, demonstrations, marches of protest, festivals. It co-operates with the National Union of Students. Religious young organizations and groups aim at helping to elderly people or working in hospitals. There are even groups where young people help released prisoners to start then life a-new. Religious organizations pay attention not only to the study of religious views but involve youth into such activities as music festivals and amateur theatre. As you see, all there organizations aim at preserving and strengthening the social and political system existing in the country. Many of them have done and still are doing useful work in providing leisure facilities for young English people. 

Problems of Youth

Life used to be fun for 'teenagers'. They used to have money to spend, and free time to spend it in. They used to wear teenage clothes, and meet in teenage coffee bars and discos. Some of them still do. But for many young people, life is harder now. Jobs are difficult to find. There's not so much money around. Things are more expensive, and it's hard to find a place to live.

Teachers say that students work harder than they used to. They are less interested in politics, and more interested in passing exams. They know that good exam results may get them better jobs.

Most young people worry more about money than their parents did twenty years ago. They try to spend less and save more. They want to be able to get homes of their own one day.

For some, the answer to unemployment is to leave home and look for work in one of Britain's big cities. Every day hundreds of young people arrive in London from other parts of Britain, looking for jobs. Some find work, and stay. Others don't find it, and go home again, or join the many unemployed in London. There used to be one kind of teenage fashion, one style, one top pop group. Then, the girls all wore mini-skirts and everyone danced to the music of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones.

But now an eighteen-year-old might be a punk, with green hair and chains round his legs, or a skin head, with short, short hair and right wing politics, or a 'rasta', with long uncombed hair and a love for Africa. There's a lot of different music around too. There's reggae, the West Indian sound, there's rock, there's heavy metal, country and western, and disco. All these kinds of music are played by different groups and listened to by different fans.

When you read the newspapers and watch the news on television, it's easy to get the idea that British young people are all unemployed, angry and in trouble.

But that's not true. Three quarters of them do more or less what their parents did. They do their best at school, find some kind of work in the end, and get married in their early twenties. They get on well with their parents, and enjoy family life. They eat fish and chips, watch football on TV, go to the pub, and like reading about pop stars. After all, if they didn't, they wouldn't be British, would they?

Antisocial Behavior

Almost daily, news headlines cry out worldwide about Britain’s youth: stabbings upon stabbings…extreme drunkenness in holiday hotspots…senseless beatings of the elderly…gangs “hanging out” and causing trouble…

For over a decade, the United Kingdom’s government has struggled with what is termed “antisocial behavior.” In response, former Prime Minister Tony Blair made it his goal to change what was happening on the streets of the UK.

It is a very real and serious problem. The government instituted programs to decrease the level of anti-social acts, but little progress has been made. Social experts have created terms such as NEETs (teens “Not in Employment, Education or Training”) and ASBOs (“Anti-Social Behavior Orders”). There is talk of pedophobia: adults in fear of young people and children.