Obligatory Map of the U.K.

Location:

Northern European island off the West coast

Physical environment:

- Low mountainous and hilled regions
- A 12,429 km coast line

Climate:

How does geography hurt or benefit this country?

The United Kingdom's location relative to the North Pole and the equator is just north of being centrally set. Therefore, it's not too warm or too cold to hinder productivity. In fact, because of the temperature range and large textile and fashion industry present within the country, seasonal fashions are at large thus giving labels the chance to cash in on the predictable climate change.

The United Kingdom is at an advantage for being surrounded by a 12,429 km coast line. This allows another immediate possibility for transportation of goods from four continents. Needless to say, it opens up a handful of other industries such as fishing or boat making which are otherwise useless industries to the area because only 1.34% of the total land area is made up of bodies of water. The other 98.66% is well used to support the mining industries within the region.

However, seeing as the country is divided into smaller islands and regions, there is a potential for the smaller remote areas to feel subject to inferiority from the 'mainland' and transport between these ocean passages could be seen as inconveniencing as shipping costs are more expensive by air or sea as opposed to the land travel possibilities present within the mainland United Kingdom.

How has the past affected the current situation?

The transition of uniting the former countries which today make up the United Kingdom was a gradual one because even when having been officially recognized as one nation, there still remained hostility and long lived cultural barriers between the regions. However, because of this union, there had to be a new set of rules set in play in order to keep members of all sides satisfied. From there spawned many principles such as property, capitalism, and parliamentary democracy as well as many other technological advancements to facilitate such ideologies which are present not only in the U.K. but around the world today.

As for the Monarchal head of state, they are mainly there to enforce such British traditions and customs rather than to completely govern the nation.

Ethnic groups:

Religions:

Languages:

What are the advantages and disadvantages to these differences?

There exists little cultural diversity in the United Kingdom. This means that everything is pretty well aimed at one target audience with little regard for ethnic and cultural minorities. However, because of customary teachings (courteous British manners, if you will), hate-crime is generally muffled which is not to say that the United Kingdom is rid of such but is rather subdued. Differences aren't instantly embraced but the minorities within the area are steadily growing which could potentially lead to a wide-scale cultural division in the near future.

Doubling time:

3.57 years

Population growth:

0.28%

Density:

243/km²

Urban vs. rural:

Dependency load:

Do you foresee any future problems as a result of growth or lack of growth?

I can't foresee any problems arising from population growth as the rate of increase seems well on par with other first world countries keeping in mind that the U.K. it's self is a pretty tiny nation so a slow but steady population increase is more than ideal.

Even so, urban sprawl still has plenty of room to eventually expand into.

Resources:

Coal, petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, lead, zinc, gold, tin, limestone, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, potash, silica sand and slate

Industries:

Machine tools, electric power equipment, automation equipment, railroad equipment, ship building,
aircraft, motor vehicles and parts,
electronics and communication equipment, metals, chemicals, coal, petroleum, paper and paper products, food processing, textiles, clothing and other consumer products

Per-capita GNP:

$21, 250

Can this country support its people?

I believe that the U.K. can support its people and their desired quality of lives as they have a wide array of exportation opportunities and renewable resources to flourish off of. Of course the U.K. has a fair share of annual debt but it's nothing that won't eventually be repaid from said sources of income.

And if G.N.P. per capita holds any significance, the most citizens should be able to easily support a complete lifestyle.

Leadership:

H.M. Queen Elizabeth II (Queen) and Tony Blair (Prime Minister)

Type of government:

Constitutional Monarchy

Does the government help or hinder development? Do people have say in decision-making?

There being two branches of government in the United Kingdom, it is highly unlikely that something of controversy requiring change would be over looked by both the government as well as the monarchal system therefore allowing a "second chance" per say for a subject of public interest to be acknowledge and then after accepted. As well, there aren't any dramatic changes made to the governmental system. With this consistency comes a certain familiarity with the public to which the government can base their decisions on, therefore favoring all or most parties.

Infant mortality:

5.08 deaths to 1000 live births

Life expectancy:

79 years

Number of physicians:

2.1 physicians/1000 people

Calorie consumption:

Literacy rate:

99%

School enrolment:

98.92 students/year

0.5 teachers/1000 people

What do the statistics tell you about the state of health and education in this nation?

Throughout history, the United Kingdom has been notorious for their elite post-secondary education facilities, scholars and advancements in virtually every field of study. Today, these universities are still in use and are still highly regarded by not only the British people but by aspiring students worldwide.

Much like Canada, the majority of schools are publicly funded however there are still over 2,500 schools under private ownership, thus giving parents and students control over where to seek education. Another alternative available in both sectors are schools which cover the necessary curriculum requirements while orientating all subjects around one common study such as Latin grammar, science or the fine arts.

In each state owned school, there also exists a volunteer force of parents, staff members and local community governors to form a school council which is responsible for upholding the standards of the school and essentially creating and enforcing any given rules while still abiding to official education standards. This way no two schools operate identically and through this internal governing force, the school can determine what is best to meet the needs of the individual schools.

Because of the sheer number of schools and Britain's reputation to uphold with education, it's safe to assume that overall, their system has been refined to meet the needs of students in most cases.

The same goes for health in the UK. Despite high caloric consumption levels and documented lack of exercise, the average British life span is still fairly high from a global point of view (the highest being Andorra at 83- a mere fourteen year difference). The same goes for the rate of stillbirths which isn't leading to any significant population decrease.

Health care dollars are almost entirely derived form tax payers. This goes without saying that there is potential for long waiting periods, obsolete equipment and such but there seems to be a relatively high number of qualified physicians so even if a major disease epidemic were to break out (in which case, international attention would be more than likely involved), the U.K.'s health care system could continue to function and the citizens would continue to live relatively healthy and freely make choices which effect their physical and mental wellbeing.

I would without doubt consider the U.K. to be a first world country. This is because not only do its citizens generally possess the required funds to execute a life style (as reflected by the G.N.P. per-capita) but also because Britain also play roles in bettering other countries quality of life. Also, statistically speaking, the U.K. also ranks as high (if not higher) than most other confirmed first world countries on censuses and statistics which contribute to a good quality of life (for example the literacy rate, clean air and consumer exports).