The geographical situation of the UK

The United Kingdom is situated on the British Isles which comprise two large islands, Great Britain and Ireland and some 5,500 small and large islands. Their total area is 244,100 square kilometers. The largest island is Great Britain. It consists of three main parts: England, Wales, and Scotland. The second in the size is the island of Ireland in which Northern Ireland occupies one third of the territory. It borders on the Republic of Ireland in the south.

The British Isles are separated from the European Continent by the North Sea, The English Channel and the Strait of Dover. The western coast of Great Britain is washed by the Atlantic Ocean and the Irish Sea. The warm currents of the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic Ocean influence the climate of Great Britain. Winters are not severely cold and summers are rarely hot. The thick fog in autumn or winter is the most typical feature of the climate in England.

The surface of England and Ireland is rather flat and it is called the Lowlands while the highland area comprises Scotland and most of Wales. The highest mountain in the United Kingdom is Ben Nevis in Scotland (1343 m.).

Scotland is a land of famous lakes. They are called “lochs”. The beautiful Loch Lomond is the largest one and Loch Ness attracts millions of tourists by its legendary monster.

There are not many rivers in Great Britain. Most of the rivers flow into the North Sea. The deepest and the longest rivers are the Thames (over 346 km long) and the Severn (about 350 km). The Thames is the busiest and most important river in the country. Many of the rivers are joined by canals. British greatest ports are associated with such rivers as the Thames, the Mersey, the Tyne, and the Clyde.

Great Britain is one of the most densely populated countries in the world‚ the average density being over 200 people per square kilometer. The population of Great Britain is more than 57 million.

British industry

Great Britain is not very rich in mineral resources. There are some deposits of coal and iron ore and vast deposits of oil and gas that were discovered in the North Sea.

Nevertheless the United Kingdom is a highly developed industrial country. It is known as one of the largest producers and exporters of iron and steel products, textile, machinery and electronics, navigation and aircraft equipment. One of the chief industries is shipbuilding. Great Britain imports oil, metal, ore, rubber, cotton, timber and enormous quantities of food-stuff, grain, meat, butter, tea so on.

The United Kingdom has an economy based mainly on private enterprises. They are not controlled by the government.

The main industrial centers are London, Sheffield Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds, Glasgow, Bristol, Edinburgh.

7% of the population is engaged in farming. The main agricultural activity is the cultivation of wheat, fruit growing and sheep rearing.

Political set-up

The United Kingdom is a parliamentary monarchy. The Monarch is the head of the state. Now it’s Elizabeth II. The Queen of Great Britain is not absolute, but constitutional. Her powers are limited by Parliament. The power is hereditary, and not elective. She appoints all the Ministers and the Prime Minister, but she takes no part in the process of decision-making. The real power in the United Kingdom belongs to the British Parliament (the legislative body) and the British Government (the executive one). The Parliament consists of the House of Lords and the House of Commons together with the Queen in her constitutional role.

The House of Commons plays the major part in law-making, it has a true power. The 650 members of the House of Commons are elected every five years.

The House of Lords does not have much power but it is very important as it can offer and change laws, it may delay certain Bills but cannot finally veto them. The members of the House of Lords are landlords, bishops and peers. They are not elected.

The British parliamentary system depends on political parties. The Government is formed by the political party, which has the majority support in the House of Commons. Its leader becomes the Prime Minister, who chooses members of Parliament from his or her party to become the Cabinet Ministers.

The British system is known as a “two-party system”. It means that one of the two strongest parties is in power. From 1832 to 1918 the dominant parties were the Conservative (or Tory) on the one hand and the Liberals (or Whigs) on the other. Later the Labour party backed by the trade unions replaced the Liberals as the main party of reform, and since 1924 the political scene has been dominated by the Conservative and Labour parties.

The United Kingdom is a member of the European Union (EU), the United Nations Organization (UNO), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the Commonwealth.

Exercises

1. Choose the right variant to complete the sentences according to the text:

1. The United Kingdom comprises …

– small and large islands

– a lot of large islands

– the British Isles

2. The British Isles are separated from the European continent by …

– the Irish Sea

– the strait of Dover

– the Atlantic Ocean

3. The busiest and the most important river is …

– the Mersey

– the Clyde

– the Thames

4. Great Britain is …

– not very rich in mineral resources

– very rich in mineral resources

– rich in mineral resources

2. Use the text to complete the sentences:

1. The United Kingdom is situated on …

2. The United Kingdom consists of …

3. The British Isles are separated from Europe by …

4. The British Isles are washed by …

5. The main industries are …

6. The main industrial centers are …

7. Great Britain imports …

8. ... is the head of the state.

9. The Queen’s rights are limited by …

10. The British Parliament consists of …

11. The main political parties are …

3. Answer the questions on the text:

1. Where is the United Kingdom situated?

2. What parts does it consist of?

3. What waters are the British Isles washed by?

4. What are the main rivers in Great Britain?

5. What goods does the British industry produce?

6. Who is the Head of the State?

7. Who has the real power in Great Britain?

8. Are the members of the House of Commons elected or not?

9. Does the House of Lords have much power?

10. What does the British parliamentary system depend on?

4. Use the text and your background knowledge to answer the questions of the quiz on Great Britain:

1. Great Britain is situated … .

2. British Isles comprise two large islands: ... .

3. The official name of Great Britain is … .

4. The United Kingdom is divided into four parts: ... .

5. The capitals of these parts are …?

6. Name some rivers of Great Britain.

7. From this list choose the cities which are situated in the UK: Edinburgh, Dresden, Washington, Bristol, Frankfurt, Oslo, Glasgow, Liverpool, Chicago, Los Angeles, Manchester.

8. The Head of the State is …?

9. The real power belongs to …?

10. British Parliament consists of two Houses: ... .

11. The British Flag is called … .

12. Which of the following traditions belong to the United Kingdom:

– to remember dead parents

– grandparents or relatives on the first Saturday in November

– to open the Parliament once a year

– to make crowns out of flowers and jump over the fire on one of the summers months

– trooping the Colour

– Chancellor sits on the sack of wool.

13. Great Britain is separated from the continent by …