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International relationsThe United Kingdom is one of the founding members of the United Nations (UN) and occupies one of the five permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council, the most powerful body in the UN. It is an important contributor to UN peacekeeping operations. Britain also plays an important part in the European Union (EU), an organization dedicated to economic cooperation among European nations. Britain’s defense policy rests on membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), along with 15 other member states, including the United States. As a member of the Western European Union (WEU), the United Kingdom is part of a forum that consults and cooperates on defense issues concerning European NATO members. Britain also belongs to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), whose 55 member nations work to foster and protect human rights. Britain is an original member of the Council of Europe, whose 40 parliamentary democracies work together on human rights and social and cultural issues. One of the most important international bodies Britain belongs to is the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF oversees the international financial system and assists member nations that are experiencing financial difficulties. £ What does being a part of European Union presuppose? Why does Britain have such ambiguous feelings about the European Union? £ Is Britain to any extent different from other members of the EU? £ What is the role of the former Empire on the world’s arena now? What is its foreign policy? £ Foreign policy dilemmasWhich of the following sentences do you think best illustrates the basic problems of British foreign policy?
£ Consider this statement in the Labour Party manifesto for the 1997 General Election: With a new Labour government, Britain will be strong in defence; resolute in standing up for its own interests; an advocate of human rights and democracy the world over; a reliable and powerful ally in the international institutions of which we are a member; and will be a leader in Europe.
PROJECT WORK: The question of security Britain is possibly the most secretive of all parliamentary democracies. The air of mystery surrounding the intelligence services fascinates the public, both in Britain and elsewhere. The success of Ian Fleming's hero James Bond, the novels of Len Deighton and also John Le Carre owes much to this fascination. Two main intelligence organisations exist: MI5, which deals with internal security and countering espionage, and MI6, Britain's spy network abroad. Speak about the security system in general, about the recent scandals, and about James Bond as a symbol of MI6. And try to answer the following questions: In what ways is Britain's preoccupation with secrecy bad for democracy? Do you think officials should legally be able to disclose secrets in the public interest? How does the British government's attitude to secrecy compare with that in our country?
2. The nation’s welfare: £ How does the NHS (National Health Service) work?
£ Social Services:
£ What is the currency? Has it been changed? What’s the recent exchange rate? PROJECT WORK: The metrical system of GB and the “LSD” system in currency before 1971 and its further change into decimal system
£ Napoleon Bonaparte once described Britain as 'a nation of shopkeepers', but since the 1960s the traditional corner shop has been slowly disappearing. The neighbourhood corner shop used to sell everything a housewife needed and the shopkeeper was an important person in the local community. The shop itself was a focus of community life, a place to chat as well as shop, in the days when Britons knew their local baker, local grocer and local butcher personally. So what happened to the corner shop?
What kind of shops do British people prefer? What are the traditional shop working hours?
PROJECT WORK: MADE IN BRITAIN Speak about he most famous trade marks and their history, about the most popular items exported form GB
SOURSES: 1. Britain (the country and its people: an introduction for learners of English), James O’Driscoll, Oxford University Press, chapters 12, 15, 18 Date: 2016-03-03; view: 1323
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Britain still cannot abandon a self-image of imperial greatness.
3. MONEY & SHOPPING:
Shopping patterns changed dramatically in the 1970s and 1980s and the customers changed too. This change has been called the 'High Street Revolution'