The country's official name is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It's population is 56 million. It consists of four parts: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. There are many small islands. The state system is a constitutional monarchy. The supreme authority is Parliament which consists of two chambers: the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The House of Commons is elected. There are four main political parties: the Labour, Conservative, Liberal and Communist parties. The party, which wins the majority of seats at a General Election, forms the cabinet. The leader of the majority party is appointed by Prime Minister. Britain is a highly developed industrial country. Its main industries are coal mining, machinery, textiles and clothing, shipbuilding, vehicles, metal manufacture, electronics, chemicals.
