II. Read the text and translate the italicized word combinations

Great Britain (official name — the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) is situated on two large islands, the larger which is Great Britain, the smaller is Ireland. In addition to these islands Great Britain includes over five hundred small islands. The total area of Great Britain is 240,000 sq. kms, its population is 56,000,000 people.

In the north-west and west the country is washed by the Atlantic Ocean and the Irish Sea, in the east — by the North Sea. The island of Great Britain is separated from France by the English Channel. Northern Ireland, which is a part of Great Britain and which is situated on the island of Ireland, is separated from Great Britain by the North Channel.

The island of Great Britain is divided into two parts: mountainous (in the north and west of the island) and lowland (in the south and east). Ben Nevis is the highest point in the UK it is only 1343 metres high. It is located in the Northern Highlands in Scotland. There are no very long rivers in Great Britain. The most important rivers are the Thames (the deepest) and the Severn (the longest). The rivers seldom freeze in winter. Due to the moderating influence of the sea Great Britain has an insular climate, rather humid and mild, with­out striking discrepancy between seasons.

The UK consists of four main parts: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Great Britain is made up of England, Scotland and Wales and does not include Northern Ireland. England is noted for its “high-tech” and car industries. London is the capita l of the UK. Scotland is a land of mountains, lakes and romantic castles. The center of government of Scotland is Edinburgh. It is large and busy. Wales is famous for its high mountains and pretty valleys, factories and coal mines, music and myths. The principal city of Wales is Cardiff. Northern Island, with farming land, is beautiful, too, it is a large industrial city with many fine building and a big port. Belfast is the seat of government of Northern Island. Administratively Great Britain is divided into 5 counties. The biggest cities of Great Britain are London, Bir­mingham, Glasgow, Liverpool, Manchester, Edinburgh, and Cardiff.

The Welsh have their own language. However, many Welsh people do not know Welsh, and English is spoken by everyone in Wales. Scotland and Ireland also have their own languages, but they are rarely spoken and English is known by everyone there.

Great Britain is a parliamentary monarchy. Officially the head of state is the Queen (or the King). However, the power of the Queen in Great Britain is not absolute. The Queen is the head of State, but her power is limited by Parliament. In practice, she reigns, but does not rule. She acts only on the advice of the min­isters and Parliament. The branches of government are: the legislative, the executive and the judicial. There is no written constitution in Great Britain, only customs, traditions and precedents. The legislative is the supreme authority.

Parliament in Great Britain has existed since 1265 and is the eldest Parliament in the world. It consists of two Houses — the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The House of Lords consists of 1000 peers who are not elected by the people. The House of Commons is a nation-wide representative body which is elected by the people at a general election, within 5 years of the last election. After the general election the Queen appoints the head of the government — the Prime Minister. As a rule the Prime Minister is the leader of the party that has won the election. The Prime Minister appoints the ministers to make up the government.

There are two main political parties in Great Britain: the Conservative party and the Labor party.

Great Britain is a highly-developed industrial country. The main fields of British industry are machine-building, ship-building, metal­lurgy, and electronics. It is known also as one of the world’s largest producers and exporters of textile, aircraft and navigation equipment.