United Kingdom
2026
- GOVERNMENT
- constitutional monarchy
- CONSTITUTION
- unwritten, partly common law, partly customs and statutes
- LEGAL SYSTEM
- based on common law traditions with some influences from the modern Roman and continental system, acts of Parliament are not reviewed by the judiciary
- LEGISLATIVE SYSTEM
- bicameral, House of Commons and House of Lords
- JUDICIAL SYSTEM
- House of Lords (is the highest court of appeal) some Lords are appointed for life by the Queen
RELIGIONS
Christians 59.5%, Muslims 4.4%, Hindu 1.3%, others 2%, unspecified 7.2%, none 25.7%
From the country
- MARCH 11, 2002United KingdomDEATH PENALTY
Brushing aside pleas for mercy from the British government,...
Brushing aside pleas for mercy from the British government, European Union and prominent opponents of capital punishment, a Georgia pardons board refused to block the execution of a British man [Tracy Housel] sentenced to death for the 1985 murder of a fe
- MARCH 10, 2002United KingdomDEATH PENALTY
The UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (www
The UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (www
- MARCH 7, 2002United KingdomDEATH PENALTY
The mother of a Briton facing execution in America...
The mother of a Briton facing execution in America begged [British Prime Minister] Tony Blair to save him
- MARCH 3, 2002United KingdomDEATH PENALTY
The Briton awaiting execution by lethal injection in...
The Briton awaiting execution by lethal injection in America expressed his remorse for the murder of a woman 17 years ago and his gratitude to Jack Straw, the foreign secretary, and other politicians for their efforts to spare his life
- FEBRUARY 27, 2002United KingdomDEATH PENALTY
Saudi Arabia is trying seven foreigners accused of...
Saudi Arabia is trying seven foreigners accused of bomb attacks that raised fears of anti-western terror in the kingdom, the interior minister said
- FEBRUARY 27, 2002United KingdomDEATH PENALTY
UK Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, intervened in the...
UK Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, intervened in the case of a British murderer on Death Row, Tracy Housel, when he rang the Governor of Georgia and requested a reprieve
- FEBRUARY 26, 2002United KingdomDEATH PENALTY
Officials in [the US state of ] Georgia are preparing...
Officials in [the US state of ] Georgia are preparing to take the final steps towards executing Briton Tracy Housel
- FEBRUARY 25, 2002United KingdomDEATH PENALTY
US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told a British...
US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told a British newspaper he would agree to allow five British prisoners alleged to have been Taliban or al-Qaeda fighters, to be tried in British courts
- FEBRUARY 25, 2002United KingdomDEATH PENALTY
UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw led condemnation of...
UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw led condemnation of Robert Mugabe after the Zimbabwean president's main rival in the forthcoming election was charged with high treason
- FEBRUARY 25, 2002United KingdomDEATH PENALTY
A Briton on death row will learn today if the US Supreme...
A Briton on death row will learn today if the US Supreme Court will give him a final appeal
- FEBRUARY 23, 2002United KingdomDEATH PENALTY
The execution of Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged...
The execution of Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in Britain, remains the single most glaring miscarriage of British justice in modern times
- FEBRUARY 22, 2002United KingdomDEATH PENALTY
The Criminal Cases Review Commission referred the conviction...
The Criminal Cases Review Commission referred the conviction of Ruth Ellis to the Court of Appeal