Northern Europe is a geographical region that occupies about 20% of the area of modern Europe. There are 10 countries in Northern Europe: Great Britain, Ireland, Iceland, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania. All these countries, except Norway and Iceland, are members of the European Union, and as a result of the 2016 referendum, the majority of UK residents voted to leave the association.
Types of government in Northern Europe are quite diverse.
Types of government in the region
The main types of government in Northern Europe are a parliamentary republic and a constitutional monarchy. But the percentage cannot be called equal. A more common form of government in Northern Europe is a parliamentary republic. It is she who is characteristic of Ireland, Iceland, Latvia, Estonia. Another common form of government in this region is the constitutional monarchy. It is characteristic of Norway and Denmark.
There are other types of government in Northern Europe besides those mentioned above. In Britain, along with the monarchy, there is a bicameral parliament. The form of government in this country is a parliamentary monarchy.
Lithuania belongs to the parliamentary-presidential republics, that is, the president has constitutional powers, and not only performs representative functions. Finland also belongs to the parliamentary-presidential republics of Northern Europe.
Sweden is a constitutional-parliamentary monarchy in form of government. The king, the head of the country, has no real political power and performs exclusively representative functions. The real political power belongs to the parliament, elected by general vote for 4 years. The prime minister is the head of the executive branch.
These are the main types of government in Northern Europe.
Geography
The peculiarities of the Nordic countries are that these countries are among the most environmentally friendly in the world, they stand out by the presence of their sea coast, rich flora and fauna. According to the list of countries on environmental performance, Finland, Iceland and Denmark have the most successful environmental policies.
In countries such as Norway and Iceland, ecotourism has gained particular popularity. Every year, millions of tourists visit these countries to enjoy the fjords and waterfalls of Norway, geysers and ice caves of Iceland, as well as to see the northern lights with their own eyes.
Economy
Northern Europe is generally an economically developed region, although the amount of income in different countries of this region is very different. The total GDP in this region is 6% of the pan-European. GDP per capita ranges from 24 thousand dollars in Lithuania to 68 thousand dollars in Norway, which is one of the ten highest rates in the world.
The economic policy of Northern Europe is quite flexible, which explains the high level of development of the region. Significant capital was invested in the most important sectors of the economy - oil and gas, minerals, engineering, shipbuilding, and fishing.
An important role in increasing production volumes was played by the principle of granting loans to enterprises on favorable terms.
Population
The population of Northern Europe is more than 100 million people. Most people live in the UK (about 65 million), least of all - in Iceland (a total of 330 thousand).
The countries of Northern Europe cannot be called densely populated. The highest population density is typical for the UK (250 people / km 2 ), the lowest - for Iceland (3 people / km 2 ).
Of all the capitals of Northern Europe, only London belongs to millionaire cities. The population of the remaining capitals is relatively small. The smallest capital of Northern Europe is Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland. The population of this city is 118.8 thousand people, which makes up almost a third of the country's population.
The population growth in the countries of Northern Europe, as well as in all other regions of Europe, is low. Positive natural population growth (fertility prevails over mortality) is typical for Ireland, Iceland, Norway, the UK, Sweden and averages 4 0/00 . This is much less than in Asia, Africa or South America.
In Denmark, Finland, Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania the population growth is negative, depopulation and aging of the nation are observed.