The UK is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy [n] with three distinct jurisdictions: England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own governments and parliaments which control various devolved matters.

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The United Kingdom is an island country located off the northwestern coast of mainland Europe. It comprises the whole of the island of Great Britain—which contains England, Wales, and Scotland—as well as the northern portion of the island of Ireland. Its capital is London.

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The UK lies between the North Atlantic and the North Sea, and comes within 35 km (22 mi) of the north-west coast of France, from which it is separated by the English Channel.

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The UK borders the Republic of Ireland on the island of Ireland. It is part of the United Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations, NATO, the G7, and the Five Eyes. Despite not being connected by land, it is said to be in Europe. It had the sixth largest economy in the world by nominal GDP in 2019.