{
  "Introduction": {
    "Background": {
      "text": "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 1999. The latter was suspended until May 2007 due to wrangling over the peace process, but devolution was fully completed in March 2010. ++ The UK was an active member of the EU from 1973 to 2016, although it chose to remain outside the Economic and Monetary Union. However, frustrated by a remote bureaucracy in Brussels and massive migration into the country, UK citizens on 23 June 2016 narrowly voted to leave the EU. The so-called “Brexit” will take years to carry out but could be the signal for referenda in other EU countries where skepticism of EU membership benefits is strong."
    }
  },
  "Geography": {
    "Location": {
      "text": "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"
    },
    "Geographic coordinates": {
      "text": "54 00 N, 2 00 W"
    },
    "Map references": {
      "text": "Europe"
    },
    "Area": {
      "total": {
        "text": "243,610 sq km"
      },
      "land": {
        "text": "241,930 sq km"
      },
      "water": {
        "text": "1,680 sq km"
      },
      "note": {
        "text": "includes Rockall and Shetland Islands"
      }
    },
    "Area - comparative": {
      "text": "twice the size of Pennsylvania; slightly smaller than Oregon"
    },
    "Land boundaries": {
      "total": {
        "text": "443 km"
      },
      "border countries": {
        "text": "Ireland 443 km"
      }
    },
    "Coastline": {
      "text": "12,429 km"
    },
    "Maritime claims": {
      "territorial sea": {
        "text": "12 nm"
      },
      "exclusive fishing zone": {
        "text": "200 nm"
      },
      "continental shelf": {
        "text": "as defined in continental shelf orders or in accordance with agreed upon boundaries"
      }
    },
    "Climate": {
      "text": "temperate; moderated by prevailing southwest winds over the North Atlantic Current; more than one-half of the days are overcast"
    },
    "Terrain": {
      "text": "mostly rugged hills and low mountains; level to rolling plains in east and southeast"
    },
    "Elevation": {
      "mean elevation": {
        "text": "162 m"
      },
      "elevation extremes": {
        "text": "lowest point: The Fens -4 m ++ highest point: Ben Nevis 1,343 m"
      }
    },
    "Natural resources": {
      "text": "coal, petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, lead, zinc, gold, tin, limestone, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, potash, silica sand, slate, arable land"
    },
    "Land use": {
      "agricultural land": {
        "text": "71% ++ arable land 25.1%; permanent crops 0.2%; permanent pasture 45.7%"
      },
      "forest": {
        "text": "11.9%"
      },
      "other": {
        "text": "17.1% (2011 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Irrigated land": {
      "text": "950 sq km (2012)"
    },
    "Population - distribution": {
      "text": "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"
    },
    "Natural hazards": {
      "text": "winter windstorms; floods"
    },
    "Environment - current issues": {
      "text": "continues to reduce greenhouse gas emissions; by 2005 the government reduced the amount of industrial and commercial waste disposed of in landfill sites to 85% of 1998 levels and recycled or composted at least 25% of household waste, increasing to 33% by 2015"
    },
    "Environment - international agreements": {
      "party to": {
        "text": "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": {
        "text": "none of the selected agreements"
      }
    },
    "Geography - note": {
      "text": "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"
    }
  },
  "People and Society": {
    "Population": {
      "text": "64,430,428 (July 2016 est.)"
    },
    "Nationality": {
      "noun": {
        "text": "Briton(s), British (collective plural)"
      },
      "adjective": {
        "text": "British"
      }
    },
    "Ethnic groups": {
      "text": "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.)"
    },
    "Languages": {
      "text": "English",
      "note": {
        "text": "the following are recognized regional languages: Scots (about 30% of the population of Scotland), 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 in Cornwall) (2012 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Religions": {
      "text": "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.)"
    },
    "Age structure": {
      "0-14 years": {
        "text": "17.44% (male 5,761,311/female 5,476,649)"
      },
      "15-24 years": {
        "text": "12.15% (male 3,997,150/female 3,830,268)"
      },
      "25-54 years": {
        "text": "40.74% (male 13,367,242/female 12,883,674)"
      },
      "55-64 years": {
        "text": "11.77% (male 3,760,020/female 3,820,525)"
      },
      "65 years and over": {
        "text": "17.9% (male 5,170,542/female 6,363,047) (2016 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Dependency ratios": {
      "total dependency ratio": {
        "text": "55.1%"
      },
      "youth dependency ratio": {
        "text": "27.6%"
      },
      "elderly dependency ratio": {
        "text": "27.6%"
      },
      "potential support ratio": {
        "text": "3.6% (2015 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Median age": {
      "total": {
        "text": "40.5 years"
      },
      "male": {
        "text": "39.3 years"
      },
      "female": {
        "text": "41.7 years (2016 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Population growth rate": {
      "text": "0.53% (2016 est.)"
    },
    "Birth rate": {
      "text": "12.1 births/1,000 population (2016 est.)"
    },
    "Death rate": {
      "text": "9.4 deaths/1,000 population (2016 est.)"
    },
    "Net migration rate": {
      "text": "2.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.)"
    },
    "Population distribution": {
      "text": "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"
    },
    "Urbanization": {
      "urban population": {
        "text": "82.6% of total population (2015)"
      },
      "rate of urbanization": {
        "text": "0.88% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Major urban areas - population": {
      "text": "LONDON (capital) 10.313 million; Manchester 2.646 million; Birmingham 2.515 million; Glasgow 1.223 million; Southampton/Portsmouth 882,000; Liverpool 870,000 (2015)"
    },
    "Sex ratio": {
      "at birth": {
        "text": "1.05 male(s)/female"
      },
      "0-14 years": {
        "text": "1.05 male(s)/female"
      },
      "15-24 years": {
        "text": "1.04 male(s)/female"
      },
      "25-54 years": {
        "text": "1.04 male(s)/female"
      },
      "55-64 years": {
        "text": "0.98 male(s)/female"
      },
      "65 years and over": {
        "text": "0.81 male(s)/female"
      },
      "total population": {
        "text": "0.99 male(s)/female (2016 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Mother's mean age at first birth": {
      "text": "28.1",
      "note": {
        "text": "data represent England and Wales only (2012 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Maternal mortality rate": {
      "text": "9 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)"
    },
    "Infant mortality rate": {
      "total": {
        "text": "4.3 deaths/1,000 live births"
      },
      "male": {
        "text": "4.7 deaths/1,000 live births"
      },
      "female": {
        "text": "3.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2016 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Life expectancy at birth": {
      "total population": {
        "text": "80.7 years"
      },
      "male": {
        "text": "78.5 years"
      },
      "female": {
        "text": "83 years (2016 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Total fertility rate": {
      "text": "1.89 children born/woman (2016 est.)"
    },
    "Contraceptive prevalence rate": {
      "text": "84%",
      "note": {
        "text": "percent of women aged 16-49 (2008/09)"
      }
    },
    "Health expenditures": {
      "text": "9.1% of GDP (2014)"
    },
    "Physicians density": {
      "text": "2.81 physicians/1,000 population (2013)"
    },
    "Hospital bed density": {
      "text": "2.9 beds/1,000 population (2011)"
    },
    "Drinking water source": {
      "improved": {
        "text": " ++ urban: 100% of population ++ rural: 100% of population ++ total: 100% of population"
      },
      "unimproved": {
        "text": " ++ urban: 0% of population ++ rural: 0% of population ++ total: 0% of population (2015 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Sanitation facility access": {
      "improved": {
        "text": " ++ urban: 99.1% of population ++ rural: 99.6% of population ++ total: 99.2% of population"
      },
      "unimproved": {
        "text": " ++ urban: 0.9% of population ++ rural: 0.4% of population ++ total: 0.8% of population (2015 est.)"
      }
    },
    "HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate": {
      "text": "0.33% (2013 est.)"
    },
    "HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS": {
      "text": "126,700 (2013 est.)"
    },
    "HIV/AIDS - deaths": {
      "text": "fewer than 600 (2013 est.)"
    },
    "Obesity - adult prevalence rate": {
      "text": "29.8% (2014)"
    },
    "Education expenditures": {
      "text": "5.8% of GDP (2014)"
    },
    "School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)": {
      "total": {
        "text": "18 years"
      },
      "male": {
        "text": "17 years"
      },
      "female": {
        "text": "18 years (2014)"
      }
    },
    "Unemployment, youth ages 15-24": {
      "total": {
        "text": "16.9%"
      },
      "male": {
        "text": "18.9%"
      },
      "female": {
        "text": "14.8% (2014 est.)"
      }
    }
  },
  "Government": {
    "Country name": {
      "conventional long form": {
        "text": "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; note - the island of Great Britain includes England, Scotland, and Wales"
      },
      "conventional short form": {
        "text": "United Kingdom"
      },
      "abbreviation": {
        "text": "UK"
      },
      "etymology": {
        "text": "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)"
      }
    },
    "Government type": {
      "text": "parliamentary constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm"
    },
    "Capital": {
      "name": {
        "text": "London"
      },
      "geographic coordinates": {
        "text": "51 30 N, 0 05 W"
      },
      "time difference": {
        "text": "UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)"
      },
      "daylight saving time": {
        "text": "+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October"
      },
      "note": {
        "text": "applies to the United Kingdom proper, not to its overseas dependencies or territories"
      }
    },
    "Administrative divisions": {
      "England": {
        "text": "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": {
        "text": "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": {
        "text": "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": {
        "text": "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": {
        "text": "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"
      },
      "Northern Ireland": {
        "text": "5 borough councils, 4 district councils, 2 city councils"
      },
      "borough councils": {
        "text": "Antrim and Newtownabbey; Ards and North Down; Armagh, Banbridge, and Craigavon; Causeway Coast and Glens; Mid and East Antrim"
      },
      "district councils": {
        "text": "Derry and Strabane; Fermanagh and Omagh; Mid Ulster; Newry, Murne, and Down"
      },
      "city councils": {
        "text": "Belfast; Lisburn and Castlereagh"
      },
      "Scotland": {
        "text": "32 council areas"
      },
      "council areas": {
        "text": "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": {
        "text": "22 unitary authorities"
      }
    },
    "Dependent areas": {
      "text": "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"
    },
    "Independence": {
      "text": "12 April 1927 (Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act establishes current name of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland); notable earlier dates: 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 and Scotland 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)"
    },
    "National holiday": {
      "text": "the UK does not celebrate one particular national holiday"
    },
    "Constitution": {
      "history": {
        "text": "unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice"
      },
      "amendments": {
        "text": "proposed as a “bill” for an “Act of Parliament” by the government or by members of the House of Commons or by the House of Lords; passage requires agreement by both houses and by the monarch (Royal Assent); note - recent 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)"
      }
    },
    "Legal system": {
      "text": "common law system; has nonbinding judicial review of Acts of Parliament under the Human Rights Act of 1998"
    },
    "International law organization participation": {
      "text": "accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction"
    },
    "Citizenship": {
      "citizenship by birth": {
        "text": "no"
      },
      "citizenship by descent only": {
        "text": "at least one parent must be a citizen of the United Kingdom"
      },
      "dual citizenship recognized": {
        "text": "yes"
      },
      "residency requirement for naturalization": {
        "text": "5 years"
      }
    },
    "Suffrage": {
      "text": "18 years of age; universal"
    },
    "Executive branch": {
      "chief of state": {
        "text": "Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); Heir Apparent Prince CHARLES (son of the queen, born 14 November 1948)"
      },
      "head of government": {
        "text": "Prime Minister Theresa MAY (since 13 July 2016)"
      },
      "cabinet": {
        "text": "Cabinet appointed by the prime minister"
      },
      "elections/appointments": {
        "text": "the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually becomes the prime minister; Theresea MAY (Conservative) assumed office 13 July 2016"
      }
    },
    "Legislative branch": {
      "description": {
        "text": "bicameral Parliament consists of the House of Lords (membership not fixed (as of December 2016 there were 809 lords eligible for taking part in the work of the House of Lords consisting of 692 life peers, 91 hereditary peers, and 26 clergy; members appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister and non-party political members recommended by the House of Lords Appointments Commission) and the House of Commons (650 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by first-past-the-post vote to serve 5-year terms unless the House is dissolved earlier)"
      },
      "elections": {
        "text": "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 there; elections are held only as vacancies in the hereditary peerage arise); House of Commons - last held on 8 May 2015 (next to be held by May 2020)"
      },
      "election results": {
        "text": "House of Commons - percent of vote by party - Conservative 36.8%, Labor 30.5%, UKIP 12.7%, Lib Dems 7.9%, SNP 4.7%, Greens 3.8%, DUP 0.6%, Sinn Fein 0.6%, Plaid Cymru 0.6%, SDLP 0.3%, Ulster Unionist Party 0.4%, other 1.1%; seats by party - Conservative 330, Labor 232, SNP 56, Lib Dems 8, DUP 8, Sinn Fein 4, Plaid Cymru 3, SDLP 3, Ulster Unionist Party 2, UKIP 1, Greens 1, other 2"
      }
    },
    "Judicial branch": {
      "highest court(s)": {
        "text": "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": {
        "text": "judge candidates selected by an independent committee of several judicial commissions, followed by their recommendations to the prime minister, and appointed by Her Majesty The Queen; justices appointed for life"
      },
      "subordinate courts": {
        "text": "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"
      }
    },
    "Political parties and leaders": {
      "text": "Alliance Party (Northern Ireland) [Naomi LONG] ++ Conservative and Unionist Party [Theresa MAY] ++ Democratic Unionist Party or DUP (Northern Ireland) [Peter ROBINSON; note - expected to be replaced by Arlene FOSTER around 11 January 2016] ++ Green Party of England and Wales or Greens [Caroline LUCAS and Jonathan BARTLEY] ++ Labor (Labour) Party [Jeremy CORBYN] ++ Liberal Democrats (Lib Dems) [Tim FARRON] ++ Party of Wales (Plaid Cymru) [Leanne WOOD] ++ Scottish National Party or SNP [Nicola STURGEON] ++ Sinn Fein (Northern Ireland) [Gerry ADAMS] ++ Social Democratic and Labor Party or SDLP (Northern Ireland) [Colum EASTWOOD] ++ Ulster Unionist Party (Northern Ireland) [Mike NESBITT] ++ UK Independence Party or UKIP [Paul NUTTALL]"
    },
    "Political pressure groups and leaders": {
      "text": "Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament ++ Confederation of British Industry ++ National Farmers' Union ++ Trades Union Congress"
    },
    "International organization participation": {
      "text": "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, UNSC (permanent), UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC"
    },
    "Diplomatic representation in the US": {
      "chief of mission": {
        "text": "Ambassador Sir Nigel Kim DARROCH (since 28 January 2016)"
      },
      "chancery": {
        "text": "3100 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008"
      },
      "telephone": {
        "text": "[1] (202) 588-6500"
      },
      "FAX": {
        "text": "[1] (202) 588-7870"
      },
      "consulate(s) general": {
        "text": "Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco"
      },
      "consulate(s)": {
        "text": "Orlando (FL), San Juan (PR)"
      }
    },
    "Diplomatic representation from the US": {
      "chief of mission": {
        "text": "Ambassador Matthew Winthrop BARZUN (since 27 November 2013)"
      },
      "embassy": {
        "text": "24 Grosvenor Square, London, W1K 6AH; note - a new embassy is scheduled to open by the end of 2017 in the Nine Elms area of Wandsworth"
      },
      "mailing address": {
        "text": "PSC 801, Box 40, FPO AE 09498-4040"
      },
      "telephone": {
        "text": "[44] (0) 20 7499-9000"
      },
      "FAX": {
        "text": "[44] (0) 20 7629-9124"
      },
      "consulate(s) general": {
        "text": "Belfast, Edinburgh"
      }
    },
    "Flag description": {
      "text": "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"
    },
    "National symbol(s)": {
      "text": "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)"
    },
    "National anthem": {
      "name": {
        "text": "\"God Save the Queen\""
      },
      "lyrics/music": {
        "text": "unknown"
      },
      "note": {
        "text": "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"
      }
    }
  },
  "Economy": {
    "Economy - overview": {
      "text": "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 Britain'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 CAMERON-led coalition government (between Conservatives and Liberal Democrats) initiated an austerity program, which has continued under the new Conservative majority government. However, the deficit still remains one of the highest in the G7, standing at 5.1% of GDP as of mid-2015. London intends to eliminate its deficit by 2020, primarily through additional cuts to public spending and welfare benefits. It has also pledged to lower its corporation tax from 20% to 18% by 2020. ++  ++ In 2012, weak consumer spending and subdued business investment weighed on the economy, however, GDP grew 1.7% in 2013 and 2.8% in 2014, accelerating because of greater consumer spending and a recovering housing market. As of late 2015, the Bank of England is examining when to begin raising interest rates from historically low levels while being cautious not to damage economic growth. While the UK is one of the fastest growing economies in the G7, economists are concerned about the potential negative impact if the UK votes to leave the EU. The UK has an extensive trade relationship with other EU members through its access to the single market and economic observers have warned an exit could jeopardize its position as the central location for European financial services."
    },
    "GDP (purchasing power parity)": {
      "text": "$2.788 trillion (2016 est.) ++ $2.737 trillion (2015 est.) ++ $2.677 trillion (2014 est.)",
      "note": {
        "text": "data are in 2016 dollars"
      }
    },
    "GDP (official exchange rate)": {
      "text": "$2.65 trillion (2015 est.)"
    },
    "GDP - real growth rate": {
      "text": "1.8% (2016 est.) ++ 2.2% (2015 est.) ++ 3.1% (2014 est.)"
    },
    "GDP - per capita (PPP)": {
      "text": "$42,500 (2016 est.) ++ $42,000 (2015 est.) ++ $41,400 (2014 est.)",
      "note": {
        "text": "data are in 2016 dollars"
      }
    },
    "Gross national saving": {
      "text": "11.4% of GDP (2016 est.) ++ 11.9% of GDP (2015 est.) ++ 12.7% of GDP (2014 est.)"
    },
    "GDP - composition, by end use": {
      "household consumption": {
        "text": "65.8%"
      },
      "government consumption": {
        "text": "19.5%"
      },
      "investment in fixed capital": {
        "text": "17.4%"
      },
      "investment in inventories": {
        "text": "0.1%"
      },
      "exports of goods and services": {
        "text": "28.8%"
      },
      "imports of goods and services": {
        "text": "-31.6% (2016 est.)"
      }
    },
    "GDP - composition, by sector of origin": {
      "agriculture": {
        "text": "0.6%"
      },
      "industry": {
        "text": "19.2%"
      },
      "services": {
        "text": "80.2% ++  (2016 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Agriculture - products": {
      "text": "cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, poultry; fish"
    },
    "Industries": {
      "text": "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, t"
    },
    "Industrial production growth rate": {
      "text": "0.3% (2016 est.)"
    },
    "Labor force": {
      "text": "33.17 million (2016 est.)"
    },
    "Labor force - by occupation": {
      "agriculture": {
        "text": "1.3%"
      },
      "industry": {
        "text": "15.2%"
      },
      "services": {
        "text": "83.5% (2014 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Unemployment rate": {
      "text": "5.1% (2016 est.) ++ 5.4% (2015 est.)"
    },
    "Population below poverty line": {
      "text": "15% (2013 est.)"
    },
    "Household income or consumption by percentage share": {
      "lowest 10%": {
        "text": "1.7%"
      },
      "highest 10%": {
        "text": "31.1% (2012)"
      }
    },
    "Distribution of family income - Gini index": {
      "text": "32.4 (2012) ++ 33.4 (2010)"
    },
    "Budget": {
      "revenues": {
        "text": "$996.3 billion"
      },
      "expenditures": {
        "text": "$1.097 trillion (2016 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Taxes and other revenues": {
      "text": "37.6% of GDP (2016 est.)"
    },
    "Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)": {
      "text": "-3.8% of GDP (2016 est.)"
    },
    "Public debt": {
      "text": "92.2% of GDP (2016 est.) ++ 89% of GDP (2015 est.)",
      "note": {
        "text": "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 in"
      }
    },
    "Fiscal year": {
      "text": "6 April - 5 April"
    },
    "Inflation rate (consumer prices)": {
      "text": "0.5% (2016 est.) ++ 0% (2015 est.)"
    },
    "Central bank discount rate": {
      "text": "0.5% (31 December 2014) ++ 0.5% (31 December 2013)"
    },
    "Commercial bank prime lending rate": {
      "text": "4.6% (31 December 2016 est.) ++ 4.51% (31 December 2015 est.)"
    },
    "Stock of narrow money": {
      "text": "$95.88 billion (31 December 2016 est.) ++ $106.7 billion (31 December 2015 est.)"
    },
    "Stock of broad money": {
      "text": "$2.669 trillion (31 December 2014 est.) ++ $3.491 trillion (31 December 2013 est.)"
    },
    "Stock of domestic credit": {
      "text": "$2.704 trillion (31 December 2016 est.) ++ $3.195 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)"
    },
    "Market value of publicly traded shares": {
      "text": "$3.019 trillion (31 December 2012 est.) ++ $2.903 trillion (31 December 2011 est.) ++ $3.107 trillion (31 December 2010 est.)"
    },
    "Current account balance": {
      "text": "-$157.3 billion (2016 est.) ++ -$153.3 billion (2015 est.)"
    },
    "Exports": {
      "text": "$412.1 billion (2016 est.) ++ $436.2 billion (2015 est.)"
    },
    "Exports - commodities": {
      "text": "manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals; food, beverages, tobacco"
    },
    "Exports - partners": {
      "text": "US 14.6%, Germany 10.1%, Switzerland 7%, China 6%, France 5.9%, Netherlands 5.8%, Ireland 5.5% (2015)"
    },
    "Imports": {
      "text": "$581.6 billion (2016 est.) ++ $627.7 billion (2015 est.)"
    },
    "Imports - commodities": {
      "text": "manufactured goods, machinery, fuels; foodstuffs"
    },
    "Imports - partners": {
      "text": "Germany 14.8%, China 9.8%, US 9.2%, Netherlands 7.5%, France 5.8%, Belgium 5% (2015)"
    },
    "Reserves of foreign exchange and gold": {
      "text": "$129.6 billion (31 December 2015 est.) ++ $107.7 billion (31 December 2014 est.)"
    },
    "Debt - external": {
      "text": "$8.126 trillion (31 March 2016 est.) ++ $8.642 trillion (31 March 2015 est.)"
    },
    "Stock of direct foreign investment - at home": {
      "text": "$2.069 trillion (31 December 2016 est.) ++ $2.04 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)"
    },
    "Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad": {
      "text": "$1.975 trillion (31 December 2016 est.) ++ $1.959 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)"
    },
    "Exchange rates": {
      "text": "British pounds (GBP) per US dollar - ++ 0.7391 (2016 est.) ++ 0.6542 (2015 est.) ++ 0.607 (2014 est.) ++ 0.6391 (2013 est.) ++ 0.6324 (2012 est.)"
    }
  },
  "Energy": {
    "Electricity - production": {
      "text": "335 billion kWh (2014 est.)"
    },
    "Electricity - consumption": {
      "text": "309 billion kWh (2014 est.)"
    },
    "Electricity - exports": {
      "text": "2.72 billion kWh (2014 est.)"
    },
    "Electricity - imports": {
      "text": "20.5 billion kWh (2014 est.)"
    },
    "Electricity - installed generating capacity": {
      "text": "96 million kW (2014 est.)"
    },
    "Electricity - from fossil fuels": {
      "text": "71.1% of total installed capacity (2014 est.)"
    },
    "Electricity - from nuclear fuels": {
      "text": "11.7% of total installed capacity (2014 est.)"
    },
    "Electricity - from hydroelectric plants": {
      "text": "5.1% of total installed capacity (2014 est.)"
    },
    "Electricity - from other renewable sources": {
      "text": "12.2% of total installed capacity (2014 est.)"
    },
    "Crude oil - production": {
      "text": "893,300 bbl/day (2015 est.)"
    },
    "Crude oil - exports": {
      "text": "699,700 bbl/day (2015 est.)"
    },
    "Crude oil - imports": {
      "text": "1.047 million bbl/day (2015 est.)"
    },
    "Crude oil - proved reserves": {
      "text": "2.8 billion bbl (1 January 2016 es)"
    },
    "Refined petroleum products - production": {
      "text": "1.308 million bbl/day (2015 est.)"
    },
    "Refined petroleum products - consumption": {
      "text": "1.545 million bbl/day (2015 est.)"
    },
    "Refined petroleum products - exports": {
      "text": "490,700 bbl/day (2015 est.)"
    },
    "Refined petroleum products - imports": {
      "text": "660,600 bbl/day (2015 est.)"
    },
    "Natural gas - production": {
      "text": "38.58 billion cu m (2014 est.)"
    },
    "Natural gas - consumption": {
      "text": "70.45 billion cu m (2014 est.)"
    },
    "Natural gas - exports": {
      "text": "10.55 billion cu m (2014 est.)"
    },
    "Natural gas - imports": {
      "text": "42.83 billion cu m (2014 est.)"
    },
    "Natural gas - proved reserves": {
      "text": "205.4 billion cu m (1 January 2016 es)"
    },
    "Carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of energy": {
      "text": "568.3 million Mt (2013 est.)"
    }
  },
  "Communications": {
    "Telephones - fixed lines": {
      "total subscriptions": {
        "text": "33.613 million"
      },
      "subscriptions per 100 inhabitants": {
        "text": "52 (July 2015 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Telephones - mobile cellular": {
      "total": {
        "text": "80.284 million"
      },
      "subscriptions per 100 inhabitants": {
        "text": "125 (July 2015 est.)"
      }
    },
    "Telephone system": {
      "general assessment": {
        "text": "technologically advanced domestic and international system"
      },
      "domestic": {
        "text": "equal mix of buried cables, microwave radio relay, and fiber-optic systems"
      },
      "international": {
        "text": "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 le (2015)"
      }
    },
    "Broadcast media": {
      "text": "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 w (2008)"
    },
    "Internet country code": {
      "text": ".uk"
    },
    "Internet users": {
      "total": {
        "text": "58.961 million"
      },
      "percent of population": {
        "text": "92% (July 2015 est.)"
      }
    }
  },
  "Transportation": {
    "National air transport system": {
      "number of registered air carriers": {
        "text": "28"
      },
      "inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers": {
        "text": "1,242"
      },
      "annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers": {
        "text": "131,449,680"
      },
      "annual freight traffic on registered air carriers": {
        "text": "5,466,504,676 mt-km (2015)"
      }
    },
    "Civil aircraft registration country code prefix": {
      "text": "G (2016)"
    },
    "Airports": {
      "text": "460 (2013)"
    },
    "Airports - with paved runways": {
      "total": {
        "text": "271"
      },
      "over 3,047 m": {
        "text": "7"
      },
      "2,438 to 3,047 m": {
        "text": "29"
      },
      "1,524 to 2,437 m": {
        "text": "89"
      },
      "914 to 1,523 m": {
        "text": "80"
      },
      "under 914 m": {
        "text": "66 (2013)"
      }
    },
    "Airports - with unpaved runways": {
      "total": {
        "text": "189"
      },
      "1,524 to 2,437 m": {
        "text": "3"
      },
      "914 to 1,523 m": {
        "text": "26"
      },
      "under 914 m": {
        "text": "160 (2013)"
      }
    },
    "Heliports": {
      "text": "9 (2013)"
    },
    "Pipelines": {
      "text": "condensate 502 km; condensate/gas 9 km; gas 28,603 km; liquid petroleum gas 59 km; oil 5,256 km; oil/gas/water 175 km; refined products 4,919 km; water 255 km (2013)"
    },
    "Railways": {
      "total": {
        "text": "16,837 km"
      },
      "broad gauge": {
        "text": "303 km 1.600-m gauge (in Northern Ireland)"
      },
      "standard gauge": {
        "text": "16,534 km 1.435-m gauge (5,357 km electrified) (2015)"
      }
    },
    "Roadways": {
      "total": {
        "text": "394,428 km"
      },
      "paved": {
        "text": "394,428 km (includes 3,519 km of expressways) (2009)"
      }
    },
    "Waterways": {
      "text": "3,200 km (620 km used for commerce) (2009)"
    },
    "Merchant marine": {
      "total": {
        "text": "504"
      },
      "by type": {
        "text": "bulk carrier 33, cargo 76, carrier 4, chemical tanker 58, container 178, liquefied gas 6, passenger 7, passenger/cargo 66, petroleum tanker 18, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 31, vehicle carrier 25"
      },
      "foreign-owned": {
        "text": "271 (Australia 1, Bermuda 6, China 7, Denmark 43, France 39, Germany 59, Hong Kong 12, Ireland 1, Italy 3, Japan 5, Netherlands 1, Norway 32, Sweden 28, Taiwan 11, Tanzania 1, UAE 8, US 14)"
      },
      "registered in other countries": {
        "text": "308 (Algeria 15, Antigua and Barbuda 1, Argentina 2, Australia 5, Bahamas 18, Barbados 6, Belgium 2, Belize 4, Bermuda 14, Bolivia 1, Brunei 2, Cabo Verde 1, Cambodia 1, Cayman Islands 2, Comoros 1, Cook Islands 2, Cyprus 7, Georgia 5, Gibraltar 6, Greece 6, (2010)"
      }
    },
    "Ports and terminals": {
      "major seaport(s)": {
        "text": "Dover, Felixstowe, Immingham, Liverpool, London, Southampton, Teesport (England); Forth Ports (Scotland); Milford Haven (Wales)"
      },
      "oil terminals": {
        "text": "Fawley Marine terminal, Liverpool Bay terminal (England); Braefoot Bay terminal, Finnart oil terminal, Hound Point terminal (Scotland)"
      },
      "container port(s) (TEUs)": {
        "text": "Felixstowe (3,248,592), London (1,932,000), Southampton (1,324,581)"
      },
      "LNG terminal(s) (import)": {
        "text": "Isle of Grain, Milford Haven, Teesside"
      }
    }
  },
  "Military and Security": {
    "Military branches": {
      "text": "Army, Royal Navy (includes Royal Marines), Royal Air Force (2013)"
    },
    "Military service age and obligation": {
      "text": "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 some ground combat roles; the UK’s Defense Ministry is expected to further ease existing women's restrictions by the end of 2016; 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)"
    },
    "Military expenditures": {
      "text": "2.07% of GDP (2015) ++ 2.2% of GDP (2014) ++ 2.3% of GDP (2013) ++ 2.49% of GDP (2012) ++ 2.48% of GDP (2011)"
    }
  },
  "Transnational Issues": {
    "Disputes - international": {
      "text": "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 countries; Spain disapproved of UK plans to grant Gibraltar greater autonomy; Mauritius 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 return; in addition, the UK created the world's largest marine protection area around the Chagos islands prohibiting the extraction of any natural resources therein; UK rejects sovereignty talks requested by Argentina, which still claims the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; territorial claim in Antarctica (British Antarctic Territory) overlaps Argentine claim and partially overlaps Chilean claim; Iceland, the UK, and Ireland dispute Denmark's claim that the Faroe Islands' continental shelf extends beyond 200 nm"
    },
    "Refugees and internally displaced persons": {
      "refugees (country of origin)": {
        "text": "12,383 (Eritrea); 12,667 (Iran); 9,045 (Zimbabwe); 9,354 (Afghanistan); 6,977 (Somalia); 6,319 (Pakistan); 5,279 (Sri Lanka); 6,076 (Sudan); 6,496 (Syria) (2015)"
      },
      "stateless persons": {
        "text": "41 (2015)"
      }
    },
    "Illicit drugs": {
      "text": "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"
    }
  }
}