Country Trading Profiles United Kingdom

Political outline | Living conditions | Useful resources | Communications

Political outline

Executive Power

Queen is the chief of the state. Though her role is in reality largely ceremonial, the Queen does continue to exercise three essential rights: the right to be consulted, the right to advice and the right to warn. Following legislative elections of the lower house of the parliament, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed as Prime minister by the Queen to serve a five-year term.

Prime Minister is the head of the government and enjoys all the executive powers that include implementation of the law in the country and running the day-to-day affairs. The Cabinet of Ministers is appointed by the Prime Minister.

Legislative Power

The legislature is bicameral in UK. The Parliament consists of: House of Lords (the upper house) having approximately 625 life peers, 92 hereditary peers and 26 clergy, and House of Commons (the lower house) having 646 seats with its members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms. The government is directly answerable to and dependent on the Parliament.

Main political parties

Labour Party: traditionally left-wing, allied to trade unions.

Conservative Party: centre-right , believes in free-market economy.

Liberal Democrats: centrist, moderate pro-European, opposes the Iraq war and strong on civil rights.

Current political leaders

Queen: ELIZABETH II (since February 1952).
Prime Minister: David Cameron (since May 2010), Conservative Party.

Next election dates

House of Commons: June 2015

Living conditions

Health and safety

Health precautions: No health or vaccination requirements. However, immigration officers can refer individuals to a doctor for a medical examination: someone visibly unwell, intending to remain for more than 6 months or coming from a country with a high rate of tuberculosis.
International hospitals: For information for non-British citizens regarding the UK medical system, and for a list of hospitals, consult Expat-medical-insurance.
For further information on sanitary conditions: World Health Organization
Department of Health
For further information on safety conditions: Visit Britain
Travel information from the Canadian Foreign Office
U.S. Department of State travel information
Contact your Embassy: Embassy of Greece in the United Kingdom
1a Holland Park
London W11 3TP
Phone: 0870 005 6720
Fax: 0207 370 7773
consulategeneral@greekembassy.org.uk http://www.greekembassy.org.uk/

Emergency numbers

Official UK emergency phone number	999
Official EU (and worldwide, via GSM) emergency phone number	112
Non-emergency health advice with NHS Direct	08 45 46 47
Gas leaks	0800 111 999
Non-emergency Police and Local authorities	101

Time difference and climate

Time and time difference: It is %T:%M %A in London (GMT in summer and GMT+ 1 in winter)
Summer time period: March to October.

Map of the time zone

Type of climate: As an island, the UK has very variable weather. Extremes of temperature are rare but snow, hail, heavy rain and heat waves can occur. Average temperatures: January 2°C, June 22°C . Waterproof, warm clothing is advisable at all times, and is essential for any visits to upland areas. The best time to visit the UK is in the summer (June, July, August), but good weather cannot be guaranteed.

For further information: The Meteorological Office
British Broadcasting Corporation - Weather Section

Average annual temperatures and rainfall

Useful resources

To find an accommodation: Visit Britain Visit Britain Visit Britain Visit Britain Visit Britain VisitBritain
Accommodation associations' websites.
To find an apartment: National Approved Letting Scheme
UK property search engines (estate agents)
UK property search engines (estate agents)

National Approved Letting Scheme
Property Finder search facility
Free property classified ads
To find a job: Agency Central
Reed
Search

Communications

Telephone codes: To make a call from the United Kingdom to Greece: dial 00 (or +) 30
To make a call to in the United Kingdom from Greece: dial 00 (or +) +44
Mobile telephone standards: International telephone standards GSM 900 and GSM1800. See Mobile-phones-uk.
Internet suffix: .uk

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