Chapters / Chapter 2

What is the UK?

Chapter 2 is the shortest chapter in the handbook. It is one block of text with a map. It explains that the UK is made up of four nations, that its full name includes Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and that some islands closely linked to the UK are not part of it. It also says where the UK is governed from and that Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have parliaments or assemblies with powers of their own. Because it is so short, people often give it almost no time. That is a mistake, because the names are the point, and the names are easy to mix up. Britain, Great Britain, the UK and the British Isles each mean something different. A few careful minutes here prevent classic wrong answers later, and the same words come back in the chapters on history and government.