Some Facts About the Northern Part of Great Britain

Demography of Scotland

1.The population of Scotland is over 5 million people. Although Edinburgh is the capital of Scotland it is not the largest city. With a population of just over 584,000, this honour falls to Glasgow. Scotland has three officially

^{The Scottish flag} recognised languages: English, Scots, and Scottish Gaelic. Almost all Scots speak Scottish English. Gaelic is mostly spoken in the Western Isles.

National symbols

2.The national flag of Scotland, known as St. Andrew's Cross, dates from the 9th century, and is thus the oldest national flag still in use. Since 1606 St. Andrew's Cross has also formed part of the design of ^{St.Andrew’s Cross}

the Union Flag. There are numerous other symbols and symbolic artefacts, both official and unofficial, including the thistle, the tartan that often signifies a particular Scottish clan and the Lion Rampant flag. St Andrew's Day, 30 November, is the national day. Since 2007 it has been a public holiday.

Scottish Law and Political System

3.Scotland's head of state is the monarch of the United Kingdom, currently Queen Elizabeth II (since 1952). Scotland has partial self-government within the United Kingdom as well as representation in the UK Parliament. Scotland's legal system continues to be ^{The creation of Union Jack}

separate from those of England and Wales and Northern Ireland. Executive and legislative powers have been devolved to, respectively, the Scottish Government and the Scottish Parliament at Holyrood in Edinburgh. The United Kingdom Parliament retains power over levels of UK taxes, social security, defence, international relations and broadcasting. The Scottish Parliament is a single legislative chamber comprising 129 Members elected for a four-year period. The Queen appoints one Member of the Scottish Parliament, (MSP), to be First Minister. Other Ministers are appointed by the First Minister. Scotland is represented in the British House of Commons by 59 MPs. The Scottish Parliament has legislative authority for all other areas relating to Scotland, as well as limited power to vary income tax. For instance, the costs of a university education, and care services for the elderly are free in Scotland, while fees are paid in the rest of the UK. Scotland was the first country in the UK to ban smoking in enclosed public places.

4.Scots law provides for three types of courts responsible for the administration of justice: civil, criminal and heraldic. The supreme civil court is the Court of Session, although civil appeals can be taken to the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (or before 1 October 2009, the House of Lords). The High Court of Justiciary is the supreme criminal court in Scotland. The Court of Session is housed at Parliament House, in Edinburgh with the High Court of Justiciary and the Supreme Court of Appeal currently located at the Lawnmarket. The sheriff court is the main criminal and civil court, hearing most of the cases. There are 49 sheriff courts throughout the country. The Court of the Lord Lyon regulates heraldry. Within criminal law, the Scots legal system is unique in having three possible verdicts: "guilty", "not guilty" and "not proven". Both "not guilty" and "not proven" result in an acquittal with no possibility of retrial. Scots juries consist of fifteen, not twelve jurors, as is more common in English-speaking countries.