UK in the 21st Century

Question 1

What are the human characteristics of the UK?[3]

Answer 1

• Population of 67 million
• London population density is 5500 people/km2
• This population density is highest in cities and on the areas around cities, like in the Midlands, but lowest in mountainous areas; East Cumbria has 24 people/km2

Note that only 12% of UK is urban because a lot of land is protected by Green Belts and private land

Question 2

What are the problems of such a high population density? [3]

Answer 2

• Leads to housing shortage; UK needs up to 240,000 new houses a year
• This leads to an increase in house prices, so people can’t afford to live there.
• It also puts pressure on healthcare and education services.

Increase in house prices is also due to Greenbelts and empty properties(over 1 million in UK) as landlords have high rent

Question 3

What are the physical characteristics of the UK? [3]

Answer 3

• North and West UK get a lot of rainfall while the South and East get less
• This is because of relief rainfall; prevailing wind blows from the SW, forcing air over the mountainous North and West, causing lots of rain on the mountains but very little on the shallow areas behind them.
• London is on a frontal rainfall boundary(between warm and cold air)

North-West receives up to 1470mm of rain a year

Question 4

What problems are caused by the physical characteristics of the UK? [3]

Answer 4

• There is more rain in the North and West, but the greatest population density is in the South East
• This causes water stress in the South East, as there is a water deficit there but a water surplus in the North West
• The demand for water therefore uses up most of the rainfall, and when water demand exceeds rainfall for a long time, droughts can occur

The demand uses up most of the rainfall because of increased use of it in farming due to climate change, increased domestic use(washing machines, etc.), and growing UK population

Question 5

What is being done to solve the water deficit in the South East UK?

Answer 5

Water Transfer Schemes, like the Cambrian Mountains to Birmingham scheme.

Question 6

What is the distribution of land use in the UK like? [3]

Answer 6

• 64% of land is agricultural
• 12% of the UK is urban
• 13% of the UK is covered in forest

Of the 64% agricultural, 20% is arable land, and 44% is used for grazing

IMPORTANT NOTE: Of the 12% Urban land, around half of it is green spaces in cities anyway, so only 6% of the UK is actually built on.

Question 7

What are the population trends in the UK? [4]

Answer 7

• The UK is still growing in poulation, and is predicted to reach 70 million by 2027
• So far more than 5 million people gained in the 21st century
• Up until the 1990s, the most growth was due to natural increase; now the most is due to net migration
• By 2015, the highest number of people were aged 40-49, due to the 1960s baby boom
• The number of people over 39 also increased by 18%, showing that the UK has an ageing population

Question 8

What is the reason for the population trends in the UK? [2]

Answer 8

• Net migration; assumed to account for 51% of projected increase over the next 25 years
• Expansion of the EU between 2004 and 2007

Immigrants account for 27% of UK babies born

Question 9

Where is the UK on the Demographic Transition Model(DTM) and why? [2]

Answer 9

London is at stage 4 of the demographic transition model because:
- Birth and death rates have fallen over the past 300 years, showing that it has been through stages 1-3
- The birth rate is 12 per 1000, and the death rate is 9 per 1000, showing that the UK population is slowly growing, so it is at stage 4(low and fluctuating birth and death rates).

Question 10

What are the causes of an ageing population? [3]

Answer 10

• Low birth rates as couples are having fewer children; there is a decrease from 2.9 children/family to 1.8/family by 2014 over 50 years
• More women are choosing not to have children than in the population
• People are living longer due to better medical care and a healthier lifestyle( e.g. not smoking), so life expectancy has increased from 72 years in 1964 to 81 years in 2014

Around 18% of the UK population is over 65.

Question 11

What is the spatial distribution of older people in the UK?[3]

Answer 11

• Fewer older people in Northern Ireland and Scotland, and more in England and Wales
• Generally lower in big cities like London and Manchester, as people live in cities to be closer to their job, so more of the population is of working age.
• The percentage of older people is higher in coastal areas , particularly South-West and East England, as people move there when they retire.

Question 12

2 social points, 2 economic point

What are the effects of an ageing population in the UK?[4]

Answer 12

Social:
- Pressure on healthcare services due to greater demand for medical care
- Some people act as unpaid carers, so they have less leisure time and are more stressed
- People may not be able to afford to have lots of children if they have older relatives, so there may be a further drop in birth rate
- Many retired people do voluntary work, which benefits the community.
Economic:
- Taxes for working people rise to pay for healthcare and services like pensions and retirement homes
- Older people who don’t work pay less tax, so their economic contribution decreases
- However, some older people look after their grandchildren, so their children can work
- Many older people have disposable income, which they spend on goods and services that boost the economy/

Question 13

What are the responses to an ageing population? [3]

Answer 13

• The Govt. may need to increase taxes or cut spending to fund more support or medical care
• The government is raising the age at which people can claim a pension, so people work longer to contribute to tax longer
• The government is encouraging people to save more money to pay for retirement
• The UK currently offers a winter fuel allowance to all older people, although in future this may be given only to people who can’t afford their heating, to spend less money/

Question 14

How has Boston, Lincolnshire’s ethnic diversity changed between 2001 and 2011? [3]

Answer 14

• The Boston population increased by 15.9% during 2001 and 2011, and England increased by 7.9%
• Annual increase of 1.6% during this time
• 10.6% of the population during this growth were from the new Eastern European countries(Latvia, Lithuania, Poland)
• 13% of Boston’s population was born in Eastern Europe by 2011
• Homeless Charity shelter set up which helped 46 migrants in 2001-2011
• 20-30 age bracket in Boston was 5,800 in 2001, went up to 8,500 in 2011

This is largely due to the 2004-2008 EU accession, which gave membership to Eastern European countries whose people could freely migrate to the UK to live and work.

Question 15

How have UK politics affected the economic changes since 2001? [1, 2, 2]

Answer 15

• Political priorities encouraged investment in new technologies and University education, leading to more computing industries and a more skilled workforce
  However the 2008 recession meant that they changed their priorities:
• Supporting businesses so that they didn’t collapse, which would have increased unemployment
• Decreasing taxes on goods to encourage spending and international trade
• Borrowing and money from private companies and overseas investors
  Post-recession, after 2009:
• Cut in spending on public services like education to raise money
• Providing training for job seekers and support for new businesses to decrease unemployment

Question 16

How have changing employment sectors affected the UK economy since 2001? [3]

Answer 16

• Since 2001, quaternary jobs have increased most, while jobs in secondary industries have decreased
• The number of people employed in primary production and tertiary industries remained fairly steady
• The biggest increases have been in professional and technical jobs
• Employment in manufacturing decreased most, partly due to cheaper materials and labour being available overseas

Question 17

How working hours affected the UK economy since 2001? [3]

Answer 17

• Overall, working hours are decreasing, from 34.7/week to 33.1/week in 2014
• Has decreased more for men than for women
• Increase in people doing part-time jobs and zero-hours contracts(where the employee isn’t guaranteed any work hours)
• Number of families with both parents working full-time has increased, when the government increased financial support for low-income working parents.

Question 18

What is an economic hub and what is their distribution pattern?

Answer 18

• An economic hub is an area of concentrated economic activity, and they often have economic influence beyond the hub itself
• They are often concentrated in the south-east of England, which is where cities are experiencing more rapid economic growth.
• The UK is encouraging investment outside of this area though, and many companies are setting up sites in other areas

Question 19

How has Cambridge changed? [2]

Answer 19

• Cambridge Science park opened in 1970, now has 1,500 businesses employing 50,000 people
• Companies like Huawei have moved their bases to Cambridge
• The University acts as a catalyst, having invested £1bn in more than 500 hi-tech and computer-based companies over the last few decades

Question 20

What is the significance of Cambridge to the UK? [3]

Answer 20

• Adds £9.4bn to the UK economy yearly, majority of which is from hi-tech businesses in the area
• Fastest growing city economy in the UK and is driving the expansion of the high-tech sector
• Major source of innovation in AI, with Apple, Amazon, Samsung, and Microsoft teams based in the city
• Unemployment is the lowest in the UK(3%)

Question 21

What is the significance of Cambridge to the region? [3]

Answer 21

• Since the 1970 launch of the Science Park, the area around and including Cambridge now houses 1,500 hi-tech companies employing over 50,000 people
• Home to 25 science parks, including the Cambridge Bio Campus, which will be the biggest medical center of its kind in the world when completed
• Total revenue of the companies around Cambridge is £14bn per year
• Well connected to London by the M11 and to the wider nation by Cambridge airport and Stanstead airport.

Question 22

Why is there conflict in Somalia? [2]

Answer 22

• President Siad Barre was overthrown in 1991 and there was no government for 20 years
• Approximately 500,000 people died due to droughts and famines during this period
• Somalia is one of the poorest countries in the world and is linked to piracy and Islamic terrorism

Question 23

What is the UK’s involvement in Somalia? [5]

Answer 23

• UK is part of the UN and the Security Council
• By April 1992, the Security Council adopted Resolution 751, which established a security force of 50 UN troops to monitor the ceasefire
• UK government has invested and contributed to UN programs combatting piracy, costing almost £500 million
• 2013-2017 humanitarian program donated £150 million to be implemented through agencies such as Save the Children and Oxfam
• In 2012 an international backed government was installed and a degree of stability returned, and life expectancy increased by 5 years, helping a total of 700,000
• Cash-for-work project encourages people to work by making brooms and energy saving stores by paying them, boosting employment.

Overall seems to have gone pretty well, though there is still lingering instability

Question 24

What has been the contribution of ethnic groups to food in the UK? [5]

Answer 24

• In 1960 there were just 300 curry restaurants, now 12,000 serving 2.5m customers weekly
• Majority are owned by British-Bangladeshi businesspeople
• They had peak sales of £4.2bn
• Chicken tikka masala was invented by Bangladeshi migrants in Glasgow in the 1970s
• Balti food was invented by Pakistani migrants in Birmingham
• Indians food was the most popular alternative to traditional British cooking in the UK
• Chicken tikka masala voted the most popular dish in the UK in 2015 and is considered by many to be the national dish

Question 25

What is the Balti Triangle? [3]

Answer 25

• An area of Balti houses clustered in the south of the Birmingham city centre
• By the 1990s there were 46 Indian/Balti houses in the area
• Due to competition from other parts in Birmingham and changing tastes the number has dropped to 12

Question 26

How influential is the UK in terms of media exports? [5]

Answer 26

• UK films took $5.3bn at the global box office in 2012
• Famous for series like Harry Potter and James Bond
• Creative industries are worth over £70bn to the UK and create 2 million jobs
• TV shows like Peppa Pig and Top Gear have a combined audience of almost 500 million
• English is spoken in many places around the world, making their media more accessible and influential
• Skyfall became the most successful UK movie ever at the global box office in 2012 with £103 million at the UK box office
• Some people copy the hairstyles and clothes of celebrities they admire, and British sales and fashion is quite popular

The answer is: They are extremely influential.