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UK Business Environment

The United Kingdom has excellent telecommunications, with widespread land telephone, mobile telephone and Internet use; however, concerns have been raised regarding development of high-speed broadband services, particularly in more rural areas, although the government is reviewing progress on this issue.

The country has extensive rail and road networks, including high-speed rail links to Europe via the Channel Tunnel trains from London serve Paris, Lille, Calais and Brussels, as well as limited services to Avignon in southern France from July to September, and the French Alp ski resorts of Motiers, Aime-la-Plagne and Bourg-St-Maurice from December to April. Plans for Eurostar trains to travel direct to Amsterdam have been delayed, with no definite date for when this link will open.There are a number of airports in the UK, with London Heathrow said to

be the worlds busiest in terms of passenger numbers. Other airports serving London are Gatwick, Luton, Stansted and London City; elsewhere, the main international airports include Manchester, Birmingham, Liverpool, Glasgow and Edinburgh.

The UK has a number of container ports, the largest being Felixstowe; others include Liverpool, London and Southampton. The Port of Dover is an essential ferry link with Europe in terms of passenger and cargo transport.

Banking is a key sector in the UK economy, with main banking groups including HSBC, Barclays, Lloyds and Royal Bank of Scotland. Lloyds of London is the worlds leading insurance market provider of specialist insurance services worldwide, and is central to the UKs insurance sector. The City of London is home to a large number of national, foreign and international banking groups, insurance groups, law firms and finance companies

UK Geography
The United Kingdom forms part of the British Isles, a group of islands situated in the north-west of Europe. Officially called the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the three jurisdictions that make up Great Britain are England, Scotland and Wales. Apart from Ireland, the

United Kingdoms closest neighbour is France, located just 22 miles (35 km) across the English Channel at its narrowest point. The country has a varied terrain, from the mountainous Highlands of Scotland and areas of Wales, to the undulating fertile hills that characterise much of England, and the low-lying Fens in Englands most easterly region. The highest point is Ben Nevis in Scotland (1,343 metres); the lowest is 4 metres below sea level, in the Fens. There are over 20 main rivers and over 380 lakes (many artificial), as well as a canal network built in the Victorian era. The United Kingdom has a total land area of 94,526 sq miles (244,820 sq km), and a coastline of 7,723 miles (12,429 km). The climate is temperate, and benefits from the warm, prevailing south-west winds over the North Atlantic Current. The west of the country receives the highest rainfall as a result of these winds; London, the capital, however, has lower rainfall than Rome, New York and Sydney, thus dispelling the citys general characterisation as being grey, dreary and largely populated by umbrella-bearing city gents! Natural resources include chalk, clay, coal, gold, gypsum, iron ore, lead, limestone, natural gas, petroleum, potash, salt, silica sand, slate, tin and zinc

UK Population, Language and Culture

The UK population was estimated to be around 61.1m in 2009. The 2001 census found 92.1% of the population to be white, 2% black, 1.8% Indian, 1.3% Pakistani, 1.2% mixed, and with 1.6% making up other. Recent years have seen an influx of Eastern Europeans and especially Poles seeking employment opportunities in the UK. The main language is English, although around a quarter of the population of Wales speaks Welsh, and Gaelic is spoken by some 60,000 Scots. According to the 2001 census, Christianity is the predominant religion (71.6% of the population), followed by Muslim (2.7%) and Hindu (1%); 1.6% of the population indicated they belonged to other religions, while 23.1% did not specify a religion or indicated they had no religion. The UK has a wide and varied culture. English literature is renowned throughout the world. In 1476, Chaucers Canterbury Tales was the first known work printed in the UK by William Caxton, who had set up a press in Westminster. The Elizabethan era saw a rise in playwrights and poets, including Christopher Marlowe, Thomas Wyatt and, of course, William Shakespeare. Literature has continued to play an important part in English culture, from Miltons 1667 work Paradise Lost, to the likes of Jane Austen, Mary Shelley, John Keats, William Blake, Oscar Wilde, the Bront sisters and Thomas Hardy, and to modern writers including Virginia Woolf, P.G. Wodehouse, T.S. Eliot, Graham Greene, Iris Murdoch and Iain Banks. The UK has many art and historical artefact collections, with focus in London on the Victoria and Albert Museum, the British Museum, The National Gallery, Tate Modern and Tate Britain, among many others. Famous British artists range from the Elizabethan-era George Gower, the 17th century miniaturist Samuel Cooper, Rococo era painter Sir Joshua Reynolds, Romantic era painter George Stubbs, landscape artist John Constable, and impressionist artist Joseph William Turner, to modern artists Francis Bacon, David Hockney, Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin. Music has been key to defining modern British style, from the Swinging Sixties with Londons Carnaby Street and Beatle Mania; to punk in the late 1970s and early 1980s; and the Britpop scene of the 1990s onwards. British classical music composers include Purcell, Elgar, Vaughan Williams and Benjamin Britten. The UK also has a long tradition of theatre, with world-famous playwrights from Shakespeare to Alan Bennett, and many famous theatre actors who have moved on to Hollywood and Oscar-winning stardom.

UK Government
The UK government consists of a constitutional monarchy and a bicameral parliament, the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The current head of church, state and the Commonwealth (which is made up of former British colonies) is Queen Elizabeth II. Politics in the UK is dominated by three parties: Labour, Conservative and, to a much lesser extent, the Liberal Democrats. However, recent years have seen a popular rise in smaller parties such as the Scottish National Party (the main remit of which is Scottish independence); the UK Independence Party (UKIP), which campaigns against European Union interference; the Green Party, which focuses on environmental issues; and the British National Party (BNP), a right-wing political party which has benefited from a public backlash against immigration. Members of the House of Commons are elected by popular vote for a period of four-five years. The current prime minister is Gordon Brown, who took over the post when the previous prime minister,

Tony Blair, stepped down from the post in 2007. Each of the 646 members of parliament which include the prime minister, and leaders of the opposition parties and the Speaker of the House represents a different area of the UK. The main role of the House of Commons is to debate policy and legislation put forward by the serving government, and to vote for or against proposed legislation. Members of Parliaments second chamber, the House of Lords, are not elected by popular vote; instead the chamber consists of around 622 political and non-political life peers who are appointed as members; 92 hereditary peers (i.e. peers who have inherited their title the automatic right to be a hereditary peer was abolished in 1999 in the first stage of House of Lords reform); and 26 clergy. The House of Lords main role is to check the work of government and legislation passed by House of Commons. While the Crown Dependencies of the Bailiwick of Jersey, the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Isle of Man belong to the British Isles, these jurisdictions are self-governing and are not part of the United Kingdom. Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales have devolved regional governments. In 2009, the Supreme Court replaced the House of Lords as the UKs highest court, thus separating the judiciary from parliament at that level. The lower courts include the Court of Appeal, the High Court of Justice, the Crown Courts, and the Magistrates Courts. The UK is divided into three legal jurisdictions, each with slight regional variations in the law; these are England and Wales; Scotland; and Northern Ireland

UK Economy and Currency

The services sector is the largest in the UK economy in terms of GDP; the sector is dominated by banking, finance and insurance, predominantly based in the City of London. The manufacturing sector historically an essential sector has been in decline over recent decades, with services taking an ever larger share. The coal, oil and natural gas industries have also been in decline, and the UK now imports much of its energy needs. In terms of agriculture, the UK provides 60% of its own food requirements. Few sectors are in public ownership the country experienced a major privatisation programme under Prime Minister Margaret Thatchers government in the 1980s, with the utilities put up for private share ownership. As a consequence, for the first time, many ordinary members of the public became shareholders in the utility firms, with flotations oversubscribed. The railways followed suit under John Major in the 1990s. The UK is a key member of the Group of Seven (G7) industrialized nations, and is also a member of the European Union. Its currency is the Pound Sterling (GBP); there are currently no plans for the UK to join the euro.

UK Entry and Residence

Generally, EU, US and certain Commonwealth country residents do not require a visa to enter the United Kingdom. The Home Offices UK Border Agency lists those countries whose nationals must apply for a visa to enter the UK; there is a separate list for those who need a visa for transit via the UK. A UK resident for taxation purposes is a person who spends a total of 183 days or more in the United Kingdom; the 183-day period includes days travelling to or from the UK for these purposes. An individuals personal lifestyle may also decide his or her UK-residence status, i.e. where his or her family, property, business and/or social connections are largely in the UK (referred to as ordinary residence). An individuals domicile may also affect his or her tax status where he or she receives foreign income and/or gains

UK Investment Incentives
For corporate income tax purposes, the first GBP300,000 of profit is taxed at 21% (the standard corporate income tax rate is 28%). This lower rate is set to increase to 22% from April 2011. Profits deriving from UK patents are, from April 2010, subject to a reduced corporate income tax rate of 10%; the aim of this reduced rate is to promote research and development in the UK. There is also a holding company regime, whereby the holding company can benefit from capital gains tax exemption (including withholding taxes). To qualify, the holding company must own at least 80% of the voting stock of the company in which it holds a controlling interest. Other incentives include a 40% first-year capital allowances regime (subject to conditions); tax credits on research and development; and the Business Premises Renovation Allowance, under which there is a 100% allowance for expenditure incurred on renovating or converting buildings in designated disadvantaged areas (available until April 2012).

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Browse business categories Agriculture, forestry and fishing (cultivation of land or animals) Arts, sports and recreation (includes leisure and culture facilities and services) Catering and accommodation (includes hotels, hostels, cafes, bars, restaurants and takeaway) Construction (building and civil engineering works) Education (includes teaching, training and instruction) Health and social care services (includes medical practice, complimentary therapies and residential or day care) IT and telecommunications services (includes training, publishing, repair and consultancy) Manufacturing (production of goods for sale) Media and creative services (includes production, distribution broadcasting and publishing) Mining, energy and utilities (extraction of metals, oil, and gas, and the supply of electricity, gas and water supply) Personal services (includes cosmetic, domestic and spiritual activities) Professional and business services (includes financial, legal, real estate, office and advertising activities) Retail, hire and repair (the sale, rental and restoration of goods) Wholesale (the sale of goods in large quantities for resale by retailers)
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