Britain

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state in northern Europe which includes England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. It is governed under a constitutional monarchy and a democratic parliamentary system made up of two houses; an elected House of Commons and an appointed House of Lords. It has a population of more than 62 million and has the world's seventh-largest economy by nominal GDP. It is predominantly a Christian country, although successive waves of migration have contributed to the growth of other faiths. It is a member of the European Union as well as the Commonwealth of Nations, the Council of Europe, G7, G8, G20, NATO, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the World Trade Organization.

SYRIA CONFLICT

Assad says 'bullying' Britain wants to arm terrorists in Syria

3 Mar 2013

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has accused the British government of wanting to arm “terrorists” in his country, in a rare interview with a UK newspaper.

Britain’s government sells French wine to pay its drinks bill

2 Mar 2013

Britain’s government is selling vintage French wine at around 5,000 pounds a bottle (HK$58,158) in a bid to make its wine cellar self-funding as part of a national austerity drive and clamp-down...

‘Great Train Robber’ Bruce Reynolds dies at 81

1 Mar 2013

Bruce Reynolds, the mastermind of the “Great Train Robbery” in Britain that brought its perpetrators cash, incarceration and pop-culture fame, died on Thursday. He was 81.

Police to investigate sex claims engulfing British coalition party

26 Feb 2013

British police on Monday said they would probe claims of sexual impropriety by a former chief executive of Britain’s Liberal Democrats that threaten to engulf party leader and deputy prime...

Labour blasts George Osborne over Britain's loss of AAA credit rating

24 Feb 2013

In a rebuff to London's hopes that sharp spending cuts would both gradually eliminate the deficit and give growth a boost, Moody's rating agency cut Britain's grade by one notch to Aa1.

Opinion

Jake Van Der Kamp

An age-old problem and the sums that just don't add up

Howard Winn

HSBC suffers the Taibbi treatment in Rolling Stone

Shirley Yam

How tycoons' IPO 'losses' may hide profits at herd's expense

Dubai police tortured Britons held on drug charges, charity claims

Grant Cameron, Karl Williams and Suneet Jeerh, all 25, were arrested while on holiday on July 10 after police allegedly found a synthetic form of cannabis known as "spice" in their car.

Beef products withdrawn from British MPs’ menu

Britain’s House of Commons on Tuesday withdrew four beef products from its canteen menus as tests were carried out for traces of horsemeat, a spokesman said.

British government divided on how to deal with China, report says

A split has emerged in the British government on managing its cooling relations with China, The Sunday Times newspaper said, citing sources.

BRITAIN

Scotland may have to reapply to UN and EU, if independent, says Britain

Scotland may have to reapply for membership of international organisations such as the UN and EU if it votes for independence, according to legal advice published by the British government on...

FALKLAND ISLANDS

Argentina says Falkland Islanders ‘do not exist’

Argentina’s Foreign Minister Hector Timerman said on Wednesday that the Falkland Islanders “do not exist” after snubbing the chance of talks with their government members.

BRITAIN

Report slams NHS after hundreds of 'needless' deaths at Stafford Hospital

The deaths of hundreds of hospital patients, left without food or water in filthy conditions, exposed an urgent need to change the culture of Britain's National Health Service (NHS), a report said...