2018 Edition

Background

The United Kingdom has historically played a leading role in developing parliamentary democracy and in advancing literature and science. At its zenith in the 19th century, the British Empire stretched over one-fourth of the earth's surface. The first half of the 20th century saw the UK's strength seriously depleted in two world wars and the Irish Republic's withdrawal from the union. The second half witnessed the dismantling of the Empire and the UK rebuilding itself into a modern and prosperous European nation. As one of five permanent members of the UN Security Council and a founding member of NATO and the Commonwealth, the UK pursues a global approach to foreign policy. The Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales, and the Northern Ireland Assembly were established in 1998. The UK has been an active member of the EU since its accession in 1973, although it chose to remain outside the Economic and Monetary Union. However, motivated in part by frustration at a remote bureaucracy in Brussels and massive migration into the country, UK citizens on 23 June 2016 narrowly voted to leave the EU. The UK and the EU are currently negotiating the terms of the UK's withdrawal and a framework for their future relationship ahead of the UK's scheduled departure from the bloc on 29 March 2019.

Area

land

241,930 sq km

note

note 1: the percentage area breakdown of the four UK countries is: England 53%, Scotland 32%, Wales 9%, and Northern Ireland 6%note 2: includes Rockall and the Shetland Islands, which are part of Scotland

total

243,610 sq km

water

1,680 sq km

Area Comparative

twice the size of Pennsylvania; slightly smaller than Oregon

Climate

temperate; moderated by prevailing southwest winds over the North Atlantic Current; more than one-half of the days are overcast

Coastline

12,429 km

Elevation

elevation extremes

-4 m lowest point: The Fens

mean elevation

162 m

note

1343 highest point: Ben Nevis

Environment Current Issues

air pollution improved but remains a concern, particularly in the London region; soil pollution from pesticides and heavy metals; decline in marine and coastal habitats brought on by pressures from housing, tourism, and industry

Environment International Agreements

party to

Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified

none of the selected agreements

Geographic Coordinates

54 00 N, 2 00 W

Geography Note

lies near vital North Atlantic sea lanes; only 35 km from France and linked by tunnel under the English Channel (the Channel Tunnel or Chunnel); because of heavily indented coastline, no location is more than 125 km from tidal waters

Irrigated Land

950 sq km (2012)

Land Boundaries

border countries (1)

Ireland 443 km

total

443 km

Land Use

arable land: 25.1% (2011 est.) / permanent crops: 0.2% (2011 est.) / permanent pasture: 45.7% (2011 est.)

agricultural land

71% (2011 est.)

forest

11.9% (2011 est.)

other

17.1% (2011 est.)

Location

Western Europe, islands - including the northern one-sixth of the island of Ireland - between the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea; northwest of France

Map References

Europe

Maritime Claims

continental shelf

as defined in continental shelf orders or in accordance with agreed upon boundaries

exclusive fishing zone

200 nm

territorial sea

12 nm

Natural Hazards

winter windstorms; floods

Natural Resources

coal, petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, lead, zinc, gold, tin, limestone, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, potash, silica sand, slate, arable land

Population Distribution

the core of the population lies in and around London, with significant clusters found in central Britain around Manchester and Liverpool, in the Scotish lowlands between Endinburgh and Glasgow, southern Wales in and around Cardiff, and far eastern Northern Ireland centered on Belfast

Terrain

mostly rugged hills and low mountains; level to rolling plains in east and southeast

Age Structure

0-14 years

17.59% (male 5,871,268 /female 5,582,107)

15-24 years

11.71% (male 3,895,850 /female 3,726,311)

25-54 years

40.29% (male 13,387,119 /female 12,843,549)

55-64 years

12.22% (male 3,936,466 /female 4,022,245)

65 years and over

18.19% (male 5,321,392 /female 6,518,939) (2018 est.)

Birth Rate

12 births/1,000 population (2018 est.)

Contraceptive Prevalence Rate

84% (2008)

note

percent of women aged 16-49

Death Rate

9.4 deaths/1,000 population (2018 est.)

Dependency Ratios

elderly dependency ratio

28.2 (2015 est.)

potential support ratio

3.5 (2015 est.)

total dependency ratio

55.5 (2015 est.)

youth dependency ratio

27.4 (2015 est.)

Drinking Water Source

improved: urban: 100% of population

rural: 100% of population

total: 100% of population

unimproved: urban: 0% of population

rural: 0% of population

total: 0% of population (2015 est.)

Education Expenditures

5.6% of GDP (2015)

Ethnic Groups

white 87.2%, black/African/Caribbean/black British 3%, Asian/Asian British: Indian 2.3%, Asian/Asian British: Pakistani 1.9%, mixed 2%, other 3.7% (2011 est.)

Health Expenditures

9.1% of GDP (2014)

Hiv Aids Adult Prevalence Rate

NA

Hiv Aids Deaths

NA

Hiv Aids People Living With Hiv Aids

NA

Hospital Bed Density

2.8 beds/1,000 population (2013)

Infant Mortality Rate

female

3.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2018 est.)

male

4.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2018 est.)

total

4.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2018 est.)

Languages

English, Scottish Gaelic (about 60,000 in Scotland), Welsh (about 20% of the population of Wales), Irish (about 10% of the population of Northern Ireland), Cornish (some 2,000 to 3,000 people in Cornwall) (2012 est.)

note

the following are recognized regional languages: Scots (about 30% of the population of Scotland)

Life Expectancy At Birth

female

83.2 years (2018 est.)

male

78.7 years (2018 est.)

total population

80.9 years (2018 est.)

Major Urban Areas Population

9.046 million LONDON (capital), 2.69 million Manchester, 2.57 million Birmingham, 1.864 million West Yorkshire, 1.661 million Glasgow, 912,000 Southampton/Portsmouth (2018)

Maternal Mortality Rate

9 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)

Median Age

female

41.7 years (2018 est.)

male

39.3 years

total

40.5 years

Mother S Mean Age At First Birth

28.5 years (2014 est.)

note

data represent England and Wales only

Nationality

adjective

British

noun

Briton(s), British (collective plural)

Net Migration Rate

2.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2017 est.)

Obesity Adult Prevalence Rate

27.8% (2016)

Physicians Density

2.83 physicians/1,000 population (2016)

Population

65,105,246 United Kingdom (July 2018 est.)

note

constituent countries: England 55,268,100 Scotland 5,404,700 Wales 3,113,200 Northern Ireland 1,862,10

Population Growth Rate

0.51% (2018 est.)

Religions

Christian (includes Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist) 59.5%, Muslim 4.4%, Hindu 1.3%, other 2%, unspecified 7.2%, none 25.7% (2011 est.)

Sanitation Facility Access

improved: urban: 99.1% of population (2015 est.)

rural: 99.6% of population (2015 est.)

total: 99.2% of population (2015 est.)

unimproved: urban: 0.9% of population (2015 est.)

rural: 0.4% of population (2015 est.)

total: 0.8% of population (2015 est.)

School Life Expectancy Primary To Tertiary Education

female

18 years (2014)

male

17 years (2014)

total

18 years (2014)

Sex Ratio

0-14 years

1.05 male(s)/female (2017 est.)

15-24 years

1.04 male(s)/female (2017 est.)

25-54 years

1.04 male(s)/female (2017 est.)

55-64 years

0.98 male(s)/female (2017 est.)

65 years and over

0.81 male(s)/female (2017 est.)

at birth

1.05 male(s)/female (2017 est.)

total population

0.99 male(s)/female (2017 est.)

Total Fertility Rate

1.88 children born/woman (2018 est.)

Unemployment Youth Ages 15 24

female

11.1% (2016 est.)

male

14.8% (2016 est.)

total

13% (2016 est.)

Urbanization

rate of urbanization

0.89% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)

urban population

83.4% of total population (2018)

Administrative Divisions

England: 27 two-tier counties, 32 London boroughs and 1 City of London or Greater London, 36 metropolitan districts, 56 unitary authorities (including 4 single-tier counties*); two-tier counties: Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Cumbria, Derbyshire, Devon, Dorset, East Sussex, Essex, Gloucestershire, Hampshire, Hertfordshire, Kent, Lancashire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, North Yorkshire, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Somerset, Staffordshire, Suffolk, Surrey, Warwickshire, West Sussex, Worcestershire; London boroughs and City of London or Greater London: Barking and Dagenham, Barnet, Bexley, Brent, Bromley, Camden, Croydon, Ealing, Enfield, Greenwich, Hackney, Hammersmith and Fulham, Haringey, Harrow, Havering, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Islington, Kensington and Chelsea, Kingston upon Thames, Lambeth, Lewisham, City of London, Merton, Newham, Redbridge, Richmond upon Thames, Southwark, Sutton, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, Wandsworth, Westminster; metropolitan districts: Barnsley, Birmingham, Bolton, Bradford, Bury, Calderdale, Coventry, Doncaster, Dudley, Gateshead, Kirklees, Knowlsey, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle upon Tyne, North Tyneside, Oldham, Rochdale, Rotherham, Salford, Sandwell, Sefton, Sheffield, Solihull, South Tyneside, St. Helens, Stockport, Sunderland, Tameside, Trafford, Wakefield, Walsall, Wigan, Wirral, Wolverhampton; unitary authorities: Bath and North East Somerset, Blackburn with Darwen, Bedford, Blackpool, Bournemouth, Bracknell Forest, Brighton and Hove, City of Bristol, Central Bedfordshire, Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester, Cornwall, Darlington, Derby, Durham County*, East Riding of Yorkshire, Halton, Hartlepool, Herefordshire*, Isle of Wight*, Isles of Scilly, City of Kingston upon Hull, Leicester, Luton, Medway, Middlesbrough, Milton Keynes, North East Lincolnshire, North Lincolnshire, North Somerset, Northumberland*, Nottingham, Peterborough, Plymouth, Poole, Portsmouth, Reading, Redcar and Cleveland, Rutland, Shropshire, Slough, South Gloucestershire, Southampton, Southend-on-Sea, Stockton-on-Tees, Stoke-on-Trent, Swindon, Telford and Wrekin, Thurrock, Torbay, Warrington, West Berkshire, Wiltshire, Windsor and Maidenhead, Wokingham, York; Northern Ireland: 5 borough councils, 4 district councils, 2 city councils; borough councils: Antrim and Newtownabbey; Ards and North Down; Armagh City, Banbridge, and Craigavon; Causeway Coast and Glens; Mid and East Antrim; district councils: Derry City and Strabane; Fermanagh and Omagh; Mid Ulster; Newry, Murne, and Down; city councils: Belfast; Lisburn and Castlereagh; Scotland: 32 council areas; council areas: Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire, Angus, Argyll and Bute, Clackmannanshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Dundee City, East Ayrshire, East Dunbartonshire, East Lothian, East Renfrewshire, City of Edinburgh, Eilean Siar (Western Isles), Falkirk, Fife, Glasgow City, Highland, Inverclyde, Midlothian, Moray, North Ayrshire, North Lanarkshire, Orkney Islands, Perth and Kinross, Renfrewshire, Shetland Islands, South Ayrshire, South Lanarkshire, Stirling, The Scottish Borders, West Dunbartonshire, West Lothian Wales: 22 unitary authorities; unitary authorities: Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Caerphilly, Cardiff, Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire, Gwynedd, Isle of Anglesey, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouthshire, Neath Port Talbot, Newport, Pembrokeshire, Powys, Rhondda Cynon Taff, Swansea, The Vale of Glamorgan, Torfaen, Wrexham

Capital

daylight saving time

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

geographic coordinates

51 30 N, 0 05 W

name

London

note

applies to the United Kingdom proper, not to its Crown dependencies or overseas territories

time difference

UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

Citizenship

citizenship by birth

no

citizenship by descent only

at least one parent must be a citizen of the United Kingdom

dual citizenship recognized

yes

residency requirement for naturalization

5 years

Constitution

amendments

proposed as a bill for an Act of Parliament by the government, by the House of Commons, or by the House of Lords; passage requires agreement by both houses and by the monarch (Royal Assent); note - additions include the Human Rights Act of 1998, the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010, the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Act 2011, the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011, and the House of Lords (Expulsion and Suspension) Act 2015 (2016)

history

unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice (2016)

Country Name

abbreviation

UK

conventional long form

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; note - the island of Great Britain includes England, Scotland, and Wales

conventional short form

United Kingdom

etymology

self-descriptive country name; the designation "Great Britain," in the sense of "Larger Britain," dates back to medieval times and was used to distinguish the island from "Little Britain," or Brittany in modern France; the name Ireland derives from the Gaelic "Eriu," the matron goddess of Ireland (goddess of the land)

Dependent Areas

Anguilla, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, Montserrat, Pitcairn Islands, Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Turks and Caicos Islands

Diplomatic Representation From The Us

chief of mission

Ambassador Robert Wood (Woody) JOHNSON IV (since 29 August 2017)

consulate(s) general

Belfast, Edinburgh

embassy

33 Nine Elms Lane, London, SW11 7US United Kingdom

FAX

[44] 20-7891-3151

mailing address

PSC 801, Box 40, FPO AE 09498-4040

telephone

[44] 20-7499-9000

Diplomatic Representation In The Us

chancery

3100 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

chief of mission

Ambassador Sir Nigel Kim DARROCH (since 28 January 2016)

consulate(s)

Orlando (FL), San Juan (Puerto Rico)

consulate(s) general

Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco

FAX

[1] (202) 588-7870

telephone

[1] (202) 588-6500

Executive Branch

cabinet

Cabinet appointed by the prime minister

chief of state

Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); Heir Apparent Prince CHARLES (son of the queen, born 14 November 1948)

elections/appointments

the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually becomes the prime minister; election last held on 8 June 2017 (next to be held by 5 May 2022)

head of government

Prime Minister Theresa MAY (Conservative) (since 13 July 2016)

note

in addition to serving as the UK head of state, the British sovereign is the constitutional monarch for 15 additional Commonwealth countries (these 16 states are each referred to as a Commonwealth realm)

Flag Description

blue field with the red cross of Saint George (patron saint of England) edged in white superimposed on the diagonal red cross of Saint Patrick (patron saint of Ireland), which is superimposed on the diagonal white cross of Saint Andrew (patron saint of Scotland); properly known as the Union Flag, but commonly called the Union Jack; the design and colors (especially the Blue Ensign) have been the basis for a number of other flags including other Commonwealth countries and their constituent states or provinces, and British overseas territories

Government Type

parliamentary constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm

Independence

no official date of independence: 927 (minor English kingdoms united); 3 March 1284 (enactment of the Statute of Rhuddlan uniting England and Wales); 1536 (Act of Union formally incorporates England and Wales); 1 May 1707 (Acts of Union formally unite England, Scotland, and Wales as Great Britain); 1 January 1801 (Acts of Union formally unite Great Britain and Ireland as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland); 6 December 1921 (Anglo-Irish Treaty formalizes partition of Ireland; six counties remain part of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland); 12 April 1927 (Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act establishes current name of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland)

International Law Organization Participation

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

International Organization Participation

ADB (nonregional member), AfDB (nonregional member), Arctic Council (observer), Australia Group, BIS, C, CBSS (observer), CD, CDB, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECB, EIB, EITI (implementing country), ESA, EU, FAO, FATF, G-5, G-7, G-8, G-10, G-20, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD (partners), IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINUSMA, MONUSCO, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Pacific Alliance (observer), Paris Club, PCA, PIF (partner), SELEC (observer), SICA (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNMISS, UNRWA, UN Security Council (permanent), UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Judicial Branch

highest courts

Supreme Court (consists of 12 justices, including the court president and deputy president); note - the Supreme Court was established by the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 and implemented in October 2009, replacing the Appellate Committee of the House of Lords as the highest court in the United Kingdom

judge selection and term of office

judge candidates selected by an independent committee of several judicial commissions, followed by their recommendations to the prime minister, and appointed by the monarch; justices serve for life

subordinate courts

England and Wales: Court of Appeal (civil and criminal divisions); High Court; Crown Court; County Courts; Magistrates' Courts; Scotland: Court of Sessions; Sheriff Courts; High Court of Justiciary; tribunals; Northern Ireland: Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland; High Court; county courts; magistrates' courts; specialized tribunals

Legal System

common law system; has nonbinding judicial review of Acts of Parliament under the Human Rights Act of 1998

Legislative Branch

description

bicameral Parliament consists of:House of Lords (membership not fixed; as of May 2018, 780 lords were eligible to participate in the work of the House of Lords - 664 life peers, 90 hereditary peers, and 26 clergy; members are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister and non-party political members recommended by the House of Lords Appointments Commission); note - House of Lords total does not include ineligible members or members on leave of absence House of Commons (650 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority popular vote to serve 5-year terms unless the House is dissolved earlier)

election results

House of Lords - composition - men 583, women 208, percent of women 26.3%House of Commons - percent of vote by party - Conservative 42.3%, Labor 40.0%, SNP 43.0%, Lib Dems 7.4%, DUP 0.9%, Sinn Fein 0.7%, Plaid Cymru 0.5%,other 0.6%; seats by party - Conservative 317, Labor 262, SNP 35, Lib Dems 12, DUP 10, Sinn Fein 7, Plaid Cymru 4, other 3; composition - men 442, women 208, percent of women 32%; total Parliament percent of women 28.9%

elections

House of Lords - no elections; note - in 1999, as provided by the House of Lords Act, elections were held in the House of Lords to determine the 92 hereditary peers who would remain; elections held only as vacancies in the hereditary peerage arise) House of Commons - last held on 8 June 2017 (next to be held by 5 May 2022)

National Anthem

lyrics/music

unknown

name

God Save the Queen

note

in use since 1745; by tradition, the song serves as both the national and royal anthem of the UK; it is known as either "God Save the Queen" or "God Save the King," depending on the gender of the reigning monarch; it also serves as the royal anthem of many Commonwealth nations

National Holiday

the UK does not celebrate one particular national holiday

National Symbol S

lion (Britain in general); lion, Tudor rose, oak (England); lion, unicorn, thistle (Scotland); dragon, daffodil, leek (Wales); shamrock, flax (Northern Ireland); national colors: red, white, blue (Britain in general); red, white (England); blue, white (Scotland); red, white, green (Wales)

Political Parties And Leaders

Alliance Party (Northern Ireland) [Naomi LONG]Conservative and Unionist Party [Theresa MAY]Democratic Unionist Party or DUP (Northern Ireland) [Arlene FOSTER]Green Party of England and Wales or Greens [Sian BERRY and Jonathan BARTLEY]Labor (Labour) Party [Jeremy CORBYN]Liberal Democrats (Lib Dems) [Sir Vince CABLE]Party of Wales (Plaid Cymru) [Adam PRICE]Scottish National Party or SNP [Nicola STURGEON]Sinn Fein (Northern Ireland) [Mary Lou MCDONALD]Social Democratic and Labor Party or SDLP (Northern Ireland) [Colum EASTWOOD]Ulster Unionist Party or UUP (Northern Ireland) [Robin SWANN]UK Independence Party or UKIP [Gerard BATTEN]

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Agriculture Products

cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, poultry; fish; milk, eggs

Budget

expenditures

1.079 trillion (2017 est.)

revenues

1.028 trillion (2017 est.)

Budget Surplus Or Deficit

-1.9% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Central Bank Discount Rate

0.25% (31 December 2016)

0.5% (31 December 2015)

Commercial Bank Prime Lending Rate

4.38% (31 December 2017 est.)

4.44% (31 December 2016 est.)

Current Account Balance

-$99.21 billion (2017 est.)

-$139.3 billion (2016 est.)

Debt External

$8.126 trillion (31 March 2016 est.)

$8.642 trillion (31 March 2015 est.)

Distribution Of Family Income Gini Index

32.4 (2012)

33.4 (2010)

Economy Overview

The UK, a leading trading power and financial center, is the third largest economy in Europe after Germany and France. Agriculture is intensive, highly mechanized, and efficient by European standards, producing about 60% of food needs with less than 2% of the labor force. The UK has large coal, natural gas, and oil resources, but its oil and natural gas reserves are declining; the UK has been a net importer of energy since 2005. Services, particularly banking, insurance, and business services, are key drivers of British GDP growth. Manufacturing, meanwhile, has declined in importance but still accounts for about 10% of economic output.In 2008, the global financial crisis hit the economy particularly hard, due to the importance of its financial sector. Falling home prices, high consumer debt, and the global economic slowdown compounded the UK’s economic problems, pushing the economy into recession in the latter half of 2008 and prompting the then BROWN (Labour) government to implement a number of measures to stimulate the economy and stabilize the financial markets. Facing burgeoning public deficits and debt levels, in 2010 the then CAMERON-led coalition government (between Conservatives and Liberal Democrats) initiated an austerity program, which has continued under the Conservative government. However, the deficit still remains one of the highest in the G7, standing at 3.6% of GDP as of 2017, and the UK has pledged to lower its corporation tax from 20% to 17% by 2020. The UK had a debt burden of 90.4% GDP at the end of 2017.The UK economy has begun to slow since the referendum vote to leave the EU in June 2016. A sustained depreciation of the British pound has increased consumer and producer prices, weighing on consumer spending without spurring a meaningful increase in exports. The UK has an extensive trade relationship with other EU members through its single market membership, and economic observers have warned the exit will jeopardize its position as the central location for European financial services. Prime Minister MAY is seeking a new "deep and special" trade relationship with the EU following the UK’s exit. However, economists doubt that the UK will be able to preserve the benefits of EU membership without the obligations. The UK is expected to officially leave the EU by the end of March 2019.

Exchange Rates

British pounds (GBP) per US dollar -

0.7836 (2017 est.)

0.738 (2016 est.)

0.738 (2015 est.)

0.607 (2014 est.)

0.6391 (2013 est.)

Exports

$441.2 billion (2017 est.)

$407.3 billion (2016 est.)

Exports Commodities

manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals; food, beverages, tobacco

Exports Partners

US 13.2%, Germany 10.5%, France 7.4%, Netherlands 6.2%, Ireland 5.6%, China 4.8%, Switzerland 4.5% (2017)

Fiscal Year

6 April - 5 April

Gdp Composition By End Use

exports of goods and services

30.2% (2017 est.)

government consumption

18.3% (2017 est.)

household consumption

65.8% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services

-31.5% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital

17.2% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories

0.2% (2017 est.)

Gdp Composition By Sector Of Origin

agriculture

0.7% (2017 est.)

industry

20.2% (2017 est.)

services

79.2% (2017 est.)

Gdp Official Exchange Rate

$2.628 trillion (2017 est.) (2017 est.)

Gdp Per Capita Ppp

$44,300 (2017 est.)

$43,800 (2016 est.)

$43,400 (2015 est.)

note

data are in 2017 dollars

Gdp Purchasing Power Parity

$2.925 trillion (2017 est.)

$2.877 trillion (2016 est.)

$2.827 trillion (2015 est.)

note

data are in 2017 dollars

Gdp Real Growth Rate

1.7% (2017 est.)

1.8% (2016 est.)

2.3% (2015 est.)

Gross National Saving

13.6% of GDP (2017 est.)

12% of GDP (2016 est.)

12.3% of GDP (2015 est.)

Household Income Or Consumption By Percentage Share

highest 10%

31.1% (2012)

lowest 10%

31.1% (2012)

Imports

$615.9 billion (2017 est.)

$591 billion (2016 est.)

Imports Commodities

manufactured goods, machinery, fuels; foodstuffs

Imports Partners

Germany 13.7%, US 9.5%, China 9.3%, Netherlands 8%, France 5.4%, Belgium 5% (2017)

Industrial Production Growth Rate

3.4% (2017 est.)

Industries

machine tools, electric power equipment, automation equipment, railroad equipment, shipbuilding, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, electronics and communications equipment, metals, chemicals, coal, petroleum, paper and paper products, food processing, textiles, clothing, other consumer goods

Inflation Rate Consumer Prices

2.7% (2017 est.)

0.7% (2016 est.)

Labor Force

33.5 million (2017 est.)

Labor Force By Occupation

agriculture

1.3%

industry

15.2%

services

83.5% (2014 est.)

Market Value Of Publicly Traded Shares

$3.019 trillion (31 December 2012 est.)

$2.903 trillion (31 December 2011 est.)

$3.107 trillion (31 December 2010 est.)

Population Below Poverty Line

15% (2013 est.)

Public Debt

87.5% of GDP (2017 est.)

87.9% of GDP (2016 est.)

note

data cover general government debt and include debt instruments issued (or owned) by government entities other than the treasury; the data include treasury debt held by foreign entities; the data include debt issued by subnational entities, as well as intragovernmental debt; intragovernmental debt consists of treasury borrowings from surpluses in the social funds, such as for retirement, medical care, and unemployment; debt instruments for the social funds are not sold at public auctions

Reserves Of Foreign Exchange And Gold

$150.8 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$129.6 billion (31 December 2015 est.)

Stock Of Broad Money

$110.9 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$96.15 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

Stock Of Direct Foreign Investment Abroad

$2.11 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)

$1.611 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)

Stock Of Direct Foreign Investment At Home

$2.078 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)

$1.858 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)

Stock Of Domestic Credit

$3.22 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)

$2.785 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)

Stock Of Narrow Money

$110.9 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$96.15 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

Taxes And Other Revenues

39.1% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Unemployment Rate

4.4% (2017 est.)

4.9% (2016 est.)

Carbon Dioxide Emissions From Consumption Of Energy

424 million Mt (2017 est.)

Crude Oil Exports

710,600 bbl/day (2017 est.)

Crude Oil Imports

907,100 bbl/day (2017 est.)

Crude Oil Production

910,500 bbl/day (2017 est.)

Crude Oil Proved Reserves

2.069 billion bbl (1 January 2018 est.)

Electricity Access

electrification - total population

100% (2016)

Electricity Consumption

309.2 billion kWh (2016 est.)

Electricity Exports

2.153 billion kWh (2016 est.)

Electricity From Fossil Fuels

50% of total installed capacity (2016 est.)

Electricity From Hydroelectric Plants

2% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)

Electricity From Nuclear Fuels

9% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)

Electricity From Other Renewable Sources

39% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)

Electricity Imports

19.7 billion kWh (2016 est.)

Electricity Installed Generating Capacity

97.06 million kW (2016 est.)

Electricity Production

318.2 billion kWh (2016 est.)

Natural Gas Consumption

79.17 billion cu m (2017 est.)

Natural Gas Exports

11.27 billion cu m (2017 est.)

Natural Gas Imports

47 billion cu m (2017 est.)

Natural Gas Production

42.11 billion cu m (2017 est.)

Natural Gas Proved Reserves

176 billion cu m (1 January 2018 est.)

Refined Petroleum Products Consumption

1.584 million bbl/day (2017 est.)

Refined Petroleum Products Exports

613,800 bbl/day (2017 est.)

Refined Petroleum Products Imports

907,500 bbl/day (2017 est.)

Refined Petroleum Products Production

1.29 million bbl/day (2017 est.)

Broadband Fixed Subscriptions

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants

40 (2017 est.)

total

26,015,818 (2017 est.)

Broadcast Media

public service broadcaster, British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), is the largest broadcasting corporation in the world; BBC operates multiple TV networks with regional and local TV service; a mixed system of public and commercial TV broadcasters along with satellite and cable systems provide access to hundreds of TV stations throughout the world; BBC operates multiple national, regional, and local radio networks with multiple transmission sites; a large number of commercial radio stations, as well as satellite radio services are available (2018)

Communications Note

the British Library claims to be the largest library in the world with well over 150 million items and in most known languages; it receives copies of all books produced in the UK or Ireland, as well as a significant proportion of overseas titles distributed in the UK; in addition to books (print and digital), holdings include: journals, manuscripts, newspapers, magazines, sound and music recordings, videos, maps, prints, patents, and drawings (2018)

Internet Country Code

.uk

Internet Users

percent of population

94.8% (July 2016 est.)

total

61,064,454 (July 2016 est.)

Telephone System

domestic

equal mix of buried cables, microwave radio relay, and fiber-optic systems (2016)

general assessment

technologically advanced domestic and international system (2016)

international

country code - 44; numerous submarine cables provide links throughout Europe, Asia, Australia, the Middle East, and US; satellite earth stations - 10 Intelsat (7 Atlantic Ocean and 3 Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region), and 1 Eutelsat; at least 8 large international switching centers (2016)

Telephones Fixed Lines

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants

50 (2017 est.)

total subscriptions

33,140,662 (2017 est.)

Telephones Mobile Cellular

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants

121 (2017 est.)

total subscriptions

79,173,658 (2017 est.)

Airports

460 (2013)

Airports With Paved Runways

1,524 to 2,437 m

89 (2013)

2,438 to 3,047 m

29 (2013)

914 to 1,523 m

80 (2013)

over 3,047 m

7 (2013)

total

271 (2013)

under 914 m

66 (2013)

Airports With Unpaved Runways

1,524 to 2,437 m

3 (2013)

914 to 1,523 m

26 (2013)

total

189 (2013)

under 914 m

160 (2013)

Civil Aircraft Registration Country Code Prefix

G (2016)

Heliports

9 (2013)

Merchant Marine

by type

bulk carrier 117, container ship 112, general cargo 175, oil tanker 173, other 974 (2017)

total

1,551 (2017)

National Air Transport System

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers

5,466,504,676 mt-km (2015)

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers

131,449,680 (2015)

inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers

1,242 (2015)

number of registered air carriers

28 (2015)

Pipelines

502 km condensate, 9 km condensate/gas, 28603 km gas, 59 km liquid petroleum gas, 5256 km oil, 175 km oil/gas/water, 4919 km refined products, 255 km water (2013)

Ports And Terminals

container port(s) (TEUs)

Felixstowe (4,000,000), London (2,537,000), Southampton (1,957,000) (2016)

LNG terminal(s) (import)

Isle of Grain, Milford Haven, Teesside

major seaport(s)

Dover, Felixstowe, Immingham, Liverpool, London, Southampton, Teesport (England); Forth Ports (Scotland); Milford Haven (Wales)

oil terminal(s)

Fawley Marine terminal, Liverpool Bay terminal (England); Braefoot Bay terminal, Finnart oil terminal, Hound Point terminal (Scotland)

Railways

broad gauge

303 km 1.600-m gauge (in Northern Ireland) (2015)

standard gauge

16,534 km 1.435-m gauge (5,357 km electrified) (2015)

total

16,837 km (2015)

Roadways

paved

394,428 km (includes 3,519 km of expressways) (2009)

total

394,428 km (2009)

Waterways

3,200 km (620 km used for commerce) (2009)

Military Branches

Army, Royal Navy (includes Royal Marines), Royal Air Force (2013)

Military Expenditures

2.2% of GDP (2016)

2.05% of GDP (2015)

2.22% of GDP (2014)

2.25% of GDP (2013)

2.51% of GDP (2012)

Military Service Age And Obligation

16-33 years of age (officers 17-28) for voluntary military service (with parental consent under 18); no conscription; women serve in military services including ground combat roles; must be citizen of the UK, Commonwealth, or Republic of Ireland; reservists serve a minimum of 3 years, to age 45 or 55; 17 years 6 months of age for voluntary military service by Nepalese citizens in the Brigade of Gurkhas; 16-34 years of age for voluntary military service by Papua New Guinean citizens (2016)

Disputes International

in 2002, Gibraltar residents voted overwhelmingly by referendum to reject any "shared sovereignty" arrangement between the UK and Spain; the Government of Gibraltar insisted on equal participation in talks between the two countriesSpain disapproved of UK plans to grant Gibraltar greater autonomyMauritius and Seychelles claim the Chagos Archipelago (British Indian Ocean Territory)in 2001, the former inhabitants of the archipelago, evicted 1967 - 1973, were granted UK citizenship and the right of return, followed by Orders in Council in 2004 that banned rehabitation, a High Court ruling reversed the ban, a Court of Appeal refusal to hear the case, and a Law Lords' decision in 2008 denied the right of returnin addition, the UK created the world's largest marine protection area around the Chagos islands prohibiting the extraction of any natural resources thereinUK rejects sovereignty talks requested by Argentina, which still claims the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islandsterritorial claim in Antarctica (British Antarctic Territory) overlaps Argentine claim and partially overlaps Chilean claimIceland, the UK, and Ireland dispute Denmark's claim that the Faroe Islands' continental shelf extends beyond 200 nm

Illicit Drugs

producer of limited amounts of synthetic drugs and synthetic precursor chemicals; major consumer of Southwest Asian heroin, Latin American cocaine, and synthetic drugs; money-laundering center

Refugees And Internally Displaced Persons

refugees (country of origin)

16,085 (Iran), 13,590 (Eritrea), 9,858 (Afghanistan), 9,100 (Syria), 8,132 (Sudan), 8,236 (Zimbabwe), 7,207 (Pakistan), 5,804 (Sri Lanka) (2017)

stateless persons

97 (2017)

Terrorist Groups Home Based

Continuity Irish Republican Army (CIRA)

aim(s): disrupt the Northern Ireland peace process; remove British rule in Northern Ireland and, ultimately, unify Irelandarea(s) of operation: based and operationally active primarily in Belfast and along the Northern Ireland-Ireland border, where operatives continue to carry out bombings, assassinations, kidnappings, hijackings, extortion, and robberies (April 2018)

New Irish Republican Army (NIRA)

aim(s): use violence to remove British rule in Northern Ireland, disrupt the Northern Ireland peace process, and unify Irelandarea(s) of operation: based and operationally active in Northern Ireland, where operatives continue to conduct occasional shootings and small-scale bombings; maintains a presence in Great Britainnote: formerly known as the Real Irish Republican Army (RIRA) (April 2018)