14. What is the present economic position of Great Britain? What are the leading industries?

The UK economy is made up of the economies of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Based on market exchange rates the UK is today the 5^th largest economy in the world and the second in Europe after Germany.

The Industrial Revolution started in the UK with an initial concentration on heavy industries such as shipbuilding, coal mining, steel production and textiles. However, after two world wars, the UK began to lose its competitive advantage and heavy industries declined. Manufacturing remains a significant part of the economy but accounts for only one-sixth of national output. Motor industry and civil and defense aircraft production also occupy a substantial sector of the UK economy. The chemical and pharmaceutical industry is strong in the UK, with the world’s second and sixth largest pharmaceutical firms being based in the UK.

The UK service sector makes up about 73% of GDP. The service sector is dominated by financial services, especially in banking and insurance.

15. How does the International Monetary Fund estimate the state of economy of Great Britain at present?

The UK is one of the strongest EU economies in terms of inflation, interest rates and unemployment, all of which remain relatively low. The UK, according to the International Monetary Fund, in 2007 had the ninth highest level of GDP.

During 2008 the IMF has warned that the UK economic outlook has worsened due to a twin shock: financial turmoil and rising commodity prices. The UK obtains revenue from exporting financial services while recording deficits in finished goods and commodities, including food.

The UK has the world’s third largest current account deficit, despite significant oil revenue. During May 2008, the IMF advised the UK government to broaden the scope of fiscal policy to promote external balance.

16. What are the three elements of Parliament in the uk?

British sovereignty collectively resides in the three elements of Parliament: the Crown, and Parliament's two chambers, the House of Lords and the House of Commons.

The House of Commons, the lower Chamber of the Parliament,is the real governing body of the UK. It has greater powers thanthe second, upper parliamentary Chamber, the House of Lords.

Their main function is to make laws by passing Acts of Parliament, as well as to discuss current political issues.

The House of Commons is made up of 659 Members of Parliament who are called MP’s for short. Each member of Parliament represents a county or a borough of the UK.

The upper chamber of Parliament, the House of Lords, is not democratic in any sense at all. It consists of four categories of peer. The majority are hereditary peers, currently about 750, of whom only about half take an active interest in the affairs of state. A smaller number, about 400, are 'life' peers - an idea introduced in 1958 to elevate to the peerage certain people who have rendered political or public service to the nation. The purpose was not merely to honour but also to enhance the quality of business done in the Lords. Until 1911 the Lords were able to reject draft laws, known as bills, passed in the Commons, and thus frustrate not only the government of the day, but also the will of the Commons. Since then the Lords have been unable to challenge financial legislation, and have only been able to delay other legislation.

The reigning monarch is not only the head of state but also a symbol of the unity of the nation. The monarch's sovereign powers are limited by the idea that national sovereignty resides in 'the Crown in Parliament' - the idea that the Crown is only sovereign by the will of Parliament. The powers of the monarch are basically to summon, suspend until the next session and dissolve Parliament; to give royal assent to legislation passed by Parliament; to appoint government ministers, judges, officers of the armed forces, governors, diplomats and bishops of the Church; to confer honours, such as peerages and knighthoods; to remit sentences passed on convicted criminals; and finally to declare war on or make peace with an enemy power.