Scotland () is a nation in northwest Europe and a constituent country of the United Kingdom. The country occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain, shares a land border to the south with England, and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the southwest. Apart from the mainland, Scotland consists of over 790 islands.

The capital, Edinburgh, is one of Europe's largest financial centres. Scottish waters consist of a large sector Image showing 1999 Scottish Fishing and Territorial Waters www.opsi.gov.uk of the North Atlantic and the North Sea, containing the largest oil reserves in the European Union.

The Kingdom of Scotland was an independent state until 1 May 1707, when the Acts of Union resulted in a political union with the Kingdom of England to create the Kingdom of Great Britain. Scotland continues to constitute a separate jurisdiction in public international law and private international law pdf file "For the purposes of the English conflict of laws, every country in the world which is not part of England and Wales is a foreign country and its foreign laws. This means that not only totally foreign independent countries such as France or Russia... are foreign countries but also British Colonies such as the Falkland Islands. Moreover, the other parts of the United Kingdom - Scotland and Northern Ireland - are foreign countries for present purposes, as are the other British Islands, the Isle of Man, Jersey and Guernsey." Conflict of Laws, JG Collier, Fellow of Trinity Hall and lecturer in Law, University of Cambridge. Scots law, the Scottish education system and the Church of Scotland have been three cornerstones contributing to the continuation of Scottish culture and Scottish national identity since the Union. Scotland is not, however, a sovereign state and enjoys neither direct membership of the United Nations nor the European Union.

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BBC News | Scotland | UK Edition

New military aviation body set up
Wed, 16 Dec 2009 14:39:43 -0000
The government is to set up a new independent military aviation authority, Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth says.
Men 'narrow' life expectancy gap
Wed, 16 Dec 2009 14:15:33 -0000
Men in Scotland are narrowing the life expectancy gap with women, the country's top doctor says.
Man, 61, dies in tower block fire
Wed, 16 Dec 2009 11:42:46 -0000
A man has died and six others have been treated in hospital after a fire in a multi-storey block of flats in Glasgow.
Murder accused offers no evidence
Wed, 16 Dec 2009 14:01:08 -0000
Convicted child killer Peter Tobin offers no evidence in his defence at a trial for the murder of Essex teenager Dinah McNicol.
Police bid over agony aunt death
Wed, 16 Dec 2009 12:08:50 -0000
A large-scale police operation will be staged in Glasgow later in a bid to catch the killer of a radio agony aunt.
'Celtic disease' screening appeal
Wed, 16 Dec 2009 11:04:06 -0000
A pilot scheme could be set up to screen for a genetic disorder which is prevalent among the Irish and Scots.

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