document_title: Religion in the United Kingdom

question_text: what percentage of the uk population say they have no religion

question_tokens: what percentage of the uk population say they have no religion

text: Religion in the United Kingdom

text: History[edit]

text: Pre-Roman forms of religion in Britain included various forms of ancestor worship and paganism.[3] Little is known about the details of such religions (see British paganism). Forms of Christianity have dominated religious life in what is now the United Kingdom for over 1,400 years. It was introduced by the Romans to what is now England, Wales, and Southern Scotland. The doctrine of Pelagianism, declared heretical in the Council of Carthage (418), originated with a British-born ascetic, Pelagius.

text: The Anglo-Saxon invasions briefly re-introduced paganism in the 5th and 6th centuries; Christianity was again brought to Great Britain by Catholic Church and Irish-Scottish missionaries in the course of the 7th century (see Anglo-Saxon Christianity).[4] Insular Christianity as it stood between the 6th and 8th centuries retained some idiosyncrasies in terms of liturgy and calendar, but it had been nominally united with Roman Christianity since at least the Synod of Whitby of 664. Still in the Anglo-Saxon period, the archbishops of Canterbury established a tradition of receiving their pallium from Rome to symbolize the authority of the Pope.

text: The Catholic Church remained the dominant form of Western Christianity in Britain throughout the Middle Ages, but the (Anglican) Church of England became the independent established church in England and Wales in 1534 as a result of the English Reformation.[5] It retains a representation in the UK Parliament and the British monarch is its Supreme Governor.[6]

text: In Scotland, the Presbyterian Church of Scotland, established in a separate Scottish Reformation in the sixteenth century, is recognized as the national church. It is not subject to state control and the British monarch is an ordinary member, required to swear an oath to "maintain and preserve the Protestant Religion and Presbyterian Church Government" upon his or her accession.[7][8]

text: The adherence to the Catholic Church continued at various levels in different parts of Britain, especially among recusants and in the north of England,[9] but most strongly in Ireland. This would expand in Great Britain, partly due to Irish immigration in the nineteenth century,[10] the Catholic emancipation and the Restoration of the English hierarchy.

text: Particularly from the mid-seventeenth century, forms of Protestant nonconformity, including Congregationalists, Baptists, Quakers and, later, Methodists, grew outside of the established church.[11] The (Anglican) Church in Wales was disestablished in 1920 and, as the (Anglican) Church of Ireland was disestablished in 1870 before the partition of Ireland, there is no established church in Northern Ireland.[12]

text: The Jews in England were expelled in 1290 and only emancipated in the 19th century. British Jews had numbered fewer than 10,000 in 1800 but around 120,000 after 1881 when Russian Jews settled permanently in Britain.[13]

text: The substantial immigration to the United Kingdom since the 1920s has contributed to the growth of foreign faiths, especially of Islam, Hinduism and Sikhism,[14] Buddhism in the United Kingdom experienced growth partly due to immigration and partly due to conversion (especially when including Secular Buddhism).[15]

text: As elsewhere in the western world, religious demographics have become part of the discourse on multiculturalism, with Britain variously described as a post-Christian society,[16] as "multi-faith",[17] or as secularised.[18] Scholars have suggested multiple possible reasons for the decline, but have not agreed on their relative importance. Martin Wellings lays out the "classical model" of secularization, while noting that it has been challenged by some scholars.

text: The familiar starting-point, a classical model of secularization, argues that religious faith becomes less plausible and religious practice more difficult in advanced industrial and urbanized societies. The breakdown or disruption of traditional communities and norms of behavior; the spread of a scientific world-view diminishing the scope of the supernatural and the role of God; increasing material affluence promoting self-reliance and this-worldly optimism; and greater awareness and toleration of different creeds and ideas, encouraging religious pluralism and eviscerating commitment to a particular faith, all form components of the case for secularization. Applied to the British churches in general by Steve Bruce and to Methodism in particular by Robert Currie, this model traces decline back to the Victorian era and charts in the twentieth century a steady ebbing of the sea of faith.[19][20][21]

text: Statistics[edit]

text: The statistics for current religion (not religion of upbringing where also asked) from the 2011 census and the corresponding statistics from the 2001 census are set out in the tables below.

text:
[hide]Religion (2011)
England[22]
Wales[22]
England and Wales[22]
Scotland[23]
Great Britain
Northern Ireland[24][25]
United Kingdom

Number
%
Number
%
Number
%
Number
%
Number
%
Number
%
Number
%

Christianity
31,479,876
59.4
1,763,299
57.6
33,243,175
59.3
2,850,199
53.8
36,093,374
58.8
1,490,588
82.3
37,583,962
59.5

Islam
2,660,116
5.0
45,950
1.5
2,706,066
4.8
76,737
1.4
2,782,803
4.5
3,832
0.21
2,786,635
4.4

Hinduism
806,199
1.5
10,434
0.34
816,633
1.5
16,379
0.3
833,012
1.4
2,382
0.13
835,394
1.3

Sikhism
420,196
0.8
2,962
0.1
423,158
0.8
9,055
0.2
432,213
0.7
216
0.01
432,429
0.7

Judaism
261,282
0.5
2,064
0.1
263,346
0.5
5,887
0.1
269,233
0.4
335
0.02
269,568
0.4

Buddhism
238,626
0.5
9,117
0.3
247,743
0.4
12,795
0.2
260,538
0.4
1,046
0.06
261,584
0.4

Other religion
227,825
0.4
12,705
0.4
240,530
0.4
15,196
0.3
255,726
0.4
7,048
0.39
262,774
0.4

Total non-Christian religion
4,614,244
8.7
83,232
2.7
4,697,476
8.4
136,049
2.6
4,833,525
7.9
14,859
0.8
4,848,384
7.7

No religion
13,114,232
24.7
982,997
32.1
14,097,229
25.1
1,941,116
36.7
16,038,345
26.1
183,164
10.1
16,221,509
25.7

Religion not stated
3,804,104
7.2
233,928
7.6
4,038,032
7.2
368,039
7.0
4,406,071
7.2
122,252
6.8
4,528,323
7.2

No religion and Religion not stated
16,918,336
31.9
1,216,925
39.7
18,135,261
32.3
2,309,155
43.6
20,444,416
33.3
305,416
16.9
20,749,832
32.8

Total population
53,012,456
100.0
3,063,456
100.0
56,075,912
100.0
5,295,403
100.0
61,371,315
100.0
1,810,863
100.0
63,182,178
100.0

text:
[show]Religion (2001)
England[26]
Wales[26]
England and Wales[26]
Scotland[27]
Great Britain
Northern Ireland[28][29]
United Kingdom

Number
%
Number
%
Number
%
Number
%
Number
%
Number
%
Number
%

Christianity
35,251,244
71.7
2,087,242
71.9
37,338,486
71.8
3,294,545
65.1
40,633,031
71.2
1,446,386
85.8
42,079,417
71.6

Islam
1,524,887
3.1
21,739
0.7
1,546,626
3.0
42,557
0.8
1,589,183
2.8
1,943
0.12
1,591,126
2.7

Hinduism
546,982
1.1
5,439
0.2
552,421
1.1
5,564
0.1
557,985
1.0
825
0.05
558,810
1.0

Sikhism
327,343
0.7
2,015
0.1
329,358
0.6
6,572
0.1
335,930
0.6
219
0.0
336,149
0.6

Judaism
257,671
0.5
2,256
0.1
259,927
0.5
6,448
0.1
266,375
0.5
365
0.0
266,740
0.5

Buddhism
139,046
0.3
5,407
0.2
144,453
0.3
6,830
0.1
151,283
0.3
533
0.0
151,816
0.3

Other religion
143,811
0.3
6,909
0.2
150,720
0.3
26,974
0.5
177,694
0.3
1,143
0.1
178,837
0.3

Total non-Christian religion
2,939,740
6.0
43,765
1.5
2,983,505
5.7
94,945
1.9
3,078,450
5.4
5,028
0.3
3,083,478
5.2

No religion
7,171,332
14.6
537,935
18.5
7,709,267
14.8
1,394,460
27.6
9,103,727
15.9
no data

no data

Religion not stated
3,776,515
7.7
234,143
8.1
4,010,658
7.7
278,061
5.5
4,288,719
7.5
no data

no data

No religion and Religion not stated
10,947,847
22.3
772,078
26.6
11,719,925
22.5
1,672,521
33.0
13,392,446
23.5
233,853
13.9
13,626,299
23.2

Total population
49,138,831
100.0
2,903,085
100.0
52,041,916
100.0
5,062,011
100.0
57,103,927
100.0
1,685,267
100.0
58,789,194
100.0

text: Surveys[edit]

text: Religious affiliations of UK citizens are recorded by regular surveys, the four major ones being the UK Census,[30] the Labour Force Survey,[31] the British Social Attitudes survey[32] and the European Social Survey.[33] The different questions asked by these surveys produced different results:

text:
The census for England and Wales asked the question "What is your religion?".[34] In 2001 14.81%[35] and in 2011 around a quarter (25.1%) of the population said they had "none" and 59.5% stated they were Christian.[36]
The census for Scotland asked the question "What religion, religious denomination or body do you belong to?".[34] In 2001 27.55%[37] and in 2011 36.7% selected 'none' and 53.8% stated they were Christian.[23]
The Labour Force Survey asked the question "What is your religion even if you are not currently practising?" with a response of 15.7% selecting 'no religion' in 2004 and 22.4% selecting 'no religion' in 2010.[38]
The British Social Attitudes survey asked the question "Do you regard yourself as belonging to any particular religion?" with 49% selecting 'no religion' in 2014.[39]
The European Social Survey asked the question "Which religion or denomination do you belong to at present?" with 50.54% of respondents selecting 'no religion' in 2002 and 52.68% selecting 'no religion' in 2008.[40]
The Pew Research Center's Western Europe Survey held between April and August 2017 asked the question "What is your present religion, if any?" with 17% of respondents selcting 'Catholicism', 54% selecting 'Protestantism', and 24% selecting 'Unaffiliated'.[41]

text: The wording of the question affects the outcome of polls as is apparent when comparing the results of the Scottish census with that of the English and Welsh census.[35][37][42][43] An ICM poll for The Guardian in 2006 asked the question "Which religion do you yourself belong to?" with a response of 64 percent stating 'Christian' and 26% stating 'None'. In the same survey, 63% claimed they are not religious with just 33% claiming they are.[44] This suggests that the religious UK population identify themselves as having Christian beliefs, but maybe not as active 'church-goers'.[45]

text: The British Social Attitudes surveys and the European Social Surveys are fielded to adult individuals.[39][40] In contrast, the United Kingdom Census and the Labour Force Surveys are household surveys; the respondent completes the questionnaire on behalf of each member of the household,[42][43][46] including children,[38] as well as for themselves. The 2010 Labour Force Survey claimed that 54% of children aged from birth to four years were Christian, rising to 59% for children aged between 5 and 9 and 65% for children aged between 10 and 14.[38] The inclusion of children with adult-imposed religions influences the results of the polls.[45][47]

text: Other major polls agree with the British Social Attitudes surveys and the European Social Surveys, with a YouGov survey fielded in February 2012 indicating that 43% of respondents claimed to belong to a religion and 76% claimed they were not very religious or not religious at all.[48] An Ipsos MORI survey fielded in August 2003 indicated that 18% of respondents claimed to be "a practising member of an organised religion" and 25% claimed "I am a non-practising member of an organised religion".[49]

text:
Detailed 2015 BSA survey on religion in the UK[50][51]

Affiliation
% of U.K. population

Christian
42
42

Church of England
17
17

Other Christian[52]
17
17

Catholic
8
8

Unaffiliated
49
49

Non-Christian faiths
8
8

Muslim
5
5

Other Non-Christian faiths
3
3

Don't know/refused answer
1
1

Total
100
100

text: A 2015 study estimated some 25,000 believers in Christ from a Muslim background, most of whom belong to an evangelical or Pentecostal community.[53]

text: Religious affiliations[edit]

text:
Religions in Great Britain – BSA 2009

Religion/Denomination
Percent
%

No religion
50.7

Church of England
19.9

Catholic
8.6

Presbyterian/Church of Scotland
2.2

Methodist
1.3

Other Protestant
1.2

Christian (no denomination)
9.3

Other Christian
0.4

Muslim
2.4

Hindu
0.9

Sikh
0.8

Judaism
0.4

Other religions
0.3

Refused / NA
0.4

Time series from the British Social Attitudes Survey showing the religion to which people consider themselves to belong.[54]

Source: BSA Survey 2009.[55][56]

text: In the 2011 census, Christianity was the largest religion, stated as their affiliation by 59.5% of respondents.[22][23][25] This figure was found to be 53% in the 2007 Tearfund survey,[57] 42.9 percent in the 2009 British Social Attitudes Survey[54] and 42.98 percent in the EU-funded European Social Survey published in April 2009[40] for those identifying as Christian.

text: Although there was no UK-wide data in the 2001 or the 2011 census on adherence to individual Christian denominations,[58] Ceri Peach estimated in 2005 that 62% of Christians were Anglican, 13.5% Catholic, 6% Presbyterian and 3.4% Methodist, with small numbers in other Protestant denominations and the Orthodox church.[59] The 2009 British Social Attitudes Survey, which covers Great Britain but not Northern Ireland, indicated that over 50 percent would self-classify as not religious at all, 19.9 percent were part of the Church of England, 9.3% non-denominational Christian, 8.6% Catholic, 2.2% Presbyterian/Church of Scotland, 1.3% Methodist, 0.53% Baptist, 1.17% other Protestant, 0.23% United Reformed Church/Congregational, 0.06% Free Presbyterian, 0.03% Brethren Christian and 0.41% other Christian.[54]

text: In a 2016 survey conducted by BSA (British Social Attitudes) on religious affiliation; 53% of respondents indicated 'no religion' and 41% indicated they were Christians, while 6% affiliated with non-Christian religions (Islam, Hinduism, Judaism etc.)[60]

text: The Pew Research Center's Western Europe Survey held between April and August 2017 asked the question "What is your present religion, if any?" with 17% of respondents selecting 'Catholicism', 54% selecting 'Protestantism', and 24% selecting 'Unaffiliated'.[61]

text: Religions other than Christianity, such as Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism and Judaism, have established a presence in the United Kingdom, both through immigration and by attracting converts. Others that have done so include the Bahá'í Faith, the Rastafari movement and Neopaganism.

text: Attendance[edit]

text: Society in the United Kingdom is markedly more secular than it was in the past and the number of churchgoers fell over the second half of the 20th century.[62] The Ipsos MORI poll in 2003 reported that 18% were "a practising member of an organised religion".[49] The Tearfund Survey in 2007 found that only 7% of the population considered themselves as practising Christians. Some 10% attended church weekly and two-thirds had not gone to church in the past year.[57][63] The Tearfund Survey also found that two-thirds of UK adults (66%) or 32.2 million people had no connection with the Church at present (nor with another religion). These people were evenly divided between those who have been in the past but have since left (16 million) and those who have never been in their lives (16.2 million).

text: A survey in 2002 found Christmas attendance at Anglican churches in England varied between 10.19% of the population in the diocese of Hereford, down to just 2.16% in Manchester.[64] Church attendance at Christmas in some dioceses was up to three times the average for the rest of the year. Overall church attendance at Christmas has been steadily increasing in recent years; a 2005 poll found that 43 per cent expected to attend a church service over the Christmas period, in comparison with 39% and 33% for corresponding polls taken in 2003 and 2001 respectively.[65]

text: A December 2007 report by Christian Research showed that the services of the Catholic Church had become the best-attended services of Christian denominations in England, with average attendance at Sunday Mass of 861,000, compared to 852,000 attending Anglican services. Attendance at Anglican services had declined by 20% between 2000 and 2006, while attendance at Catholic services, boosted by large-scale immigration from Poland and Lithuania, had declined by only 13%. In Scotland, attendance at Church of Scotland services declined by 19% and attendance at Catholic services fell by 25%.[66] British Social Attitudes Surveys have shown the proportion of those in Great Britain who consider they "belong to" Christianity to have fallen from 66% in 1983 to 43% in 2009.[54]

text: In 2012 about 6% of the population of the United Kingdom regularly attended church, with the average age of attendees being 51; in contrast, in 1980, 11% had regularly attended, with an average age of 37. It is predicted that by 2020 attendance will be around 4%, with an average age of 56.[62] This decline in church attendance has forced many churches to close down across the United Kingdom, with the Church of England alone closing 1,500 churches between 1969 and 2002. Their fates include dereliction, demolition, and residential, artistic and commercial conversion.[67] In October 2014 weekly attendance at Church of England services dropped below 1 million for the first time. At Christmas 2014, 2.4 million attended. For that year baptisms were 130,000, down 12% since 2004; marriages were 50,000, down 19%; and funerals 146,000, down 29%. The Church estimated that about 1% of churchgoers were lost to death each year; the Church's age profile suggested that attendances would continue to decline.[68]

text: One study showed that in 2004 at least 930,000 Muslims attended a mosque at least once a week, just outnumbering the 916,000 regular churchgoers in the Church of England.[69] Muslim sources claim the number of practising Muslims is underestimated as nearly all of them pray at home.[70]

text: Belief[edit]

text:
European Social Survey (UK)

"Do you consider yourself as belonging to any particular religion or denomination?"

Year
Yes
No

2008
47.32%
52.64%

2006
48.45%
51.34%

2004
50.55%
49.24%

2002
49.46%
50.49%

Source: European social survey 2002–2010[71]

text: There is a disparity between the figures for those identifying themselves with a particular religion and for those proclaiming a belief in a God:

text:
In a 2011 YouGov poll, 34% of UK citizens said they believed in a God or gods.[72]
A Eurobarometer opinion poll in 2010 reported that 37% of UK citizens "believed there is a God", 33% believe there is "some sort of spirit or life force" and 25% answered "I don't believe there is any sort of spirit, God or life force".[73]
The 2008 European Social Survey suggested that 46.94% of UK citizens never prayed and 18.96% prayed daily.[40]
A survey in 2007 suggested that 42% of adults resident in the United Kingdom prayed, with one in six praying daily.[74]

text: Jedi census phenomenon[edit]

text: In the 2001 census, 390,127 individuals (0.7 percent of total respondents) in England and Wales self-identified as followers of the Jedi faith. This Jedi census phenomenon followed an internet campaign that stated, incorrectly, that the Jedi belief system would receive official government recognition as a religion if it received enough support in the census.[75] An email in support of the campaign, quoted by BBC News, invited people to "do it because you love Star Wars ... or just to annoy people".[76] The Office for National Statistics revealed the total figure in a press release entitled "390,000 Jedi there are".[77]

text: Christianity[edit]

text:
Christian denominations
in the United Kingdom

v
t
e

UK Interchurch[show]

Affinity (formerly British Evangelical Council)
Churches Together in Britain & Ireland
Evangelical Alliance, UK
Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches

Churches Together in England

Action of Churches Together, Scotland (ACTS)
Churches Together in Wales
Evangelical Movement of Wales

Anglican[show]

Church of England
Church of Ireland
Scottish Episcopal Church
Church in Wales

Baptist[show]

Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland
Baptist Union of Great Britain
Baptist Union of Scotland
Baptist Union of Wales

Catholic[show]

Roman Catholicism

Roman Catholicism in England & Wales
Roman Catholicism in Ireland
Roman Catholicism in Scotland

Holiness & Pietist[show]

Church of the Nazarene
Salvation Army
Seventh-day Adventist Church
Wesleyan Holiness Church

Lutheran[show]

Lutheran Church in Great Britain

Methodist & Wesleyan[show]

Methodist Church of Great Britain
Methodist Church in Ireland

New Church Movement[show]

Newfrontiers
Pioneer Church

Orthodox[show]

Greek Orthodox of G.B. (Eastern Orthodox)

Pentecostal[show]

Assemblies of God
Church of God in Christ
Elim Pentecostal Church

Presbyterian & Reformed[show]

Asso. Presbyterian Churches, Scotland
Church of Scotland
Congregational Federation
Evangelical Presbyterian Church
Presbyterian Church in Ireland
Presbyterian Church of Wales
United Free Church of Scotland
United Reformed Church

Other[show]

LDS Church in England
LDS Church in Wales
LDS Church in Scotland
LDS Church in Ireland
Quakers/ Britain Yearly Meeting

text: The United Kingdom was formed by the union of previously independent states in 1707,[78][79][80] and consequently most of the largest religious groups do not have UK-wide organisational structures. While some groups have separate structures for the individual countries of the United Kingdom, others have a single structure covering England and Wales or Great Britain. Similarly, due to the relatively recent creation of Northern Ireland in 1921, most major religious groups in Northern Ireland are organised on an all-Ireland basis.

text: Anglicanism[edit]

text: The Church of England is the established church in England.[5] Its most senior bishops sit in the national parliament and the Queen is its supreme governor. It is also the "mother church" of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The Church of England separated from the Catholic Church in 1534 and became the established church by an Act of Parliament in the Act of Supremacy, beginning a series of events known as the English Reformation.[81] Historically it has been the predominant Christian denomination in England and Wales, in terms of both influence and number of adherents.

text: The Scottish Episcopal Church, which is part of the Anglican Communion (but not a "daughter church" of the Church of England),[82] dates from the final establishment of Presbyterianism in Scotland in 1690, when it split from the Church of Scotland. In the 1920s, the Church in Wales became disestablished and independent from the Church of England, but remains in the Anglican Communion.[83]

text: During the years 2012 to 2014 the number of members of the Church of England dropped by around 1.7 million.[84][85][86]

text: Catholic Church[edit]

text: The Catholic Church has separate national organisations for England and Wales, for Scotland and for Ireland, which means there is no single hierarchy for the Catholic Church in the United Kingdom. The Catholic Church in England and Wales is the second largest Christian church with around five million members, mainly in England.[87] There is, however, a single apostolic nuncio to Great Britain, presently Archbishop Edward Joseph Adams. The Catholic Church in Scotland is Scotland's second largest Christian church, representing a sixth of the population.[88] The apostolic nuncio to the whole of Ireland (both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland) is Charles Brown. Eastern Rite Catholics in the United Kingdom are served by their own clergy and do not belong to the Latin Church dioceses but are still in full communion with the Bishop of Rome.

text: Presbyterianism, Congregationalism and other Reformed[edit]

text: In Scotland, the Church of Scotland (informally known by its Scots language name, "the Kirk"), is recognised as the national church.[89] It is not subject to state control and the British monarch is an ordinary member, required to swear an oath to "maintain and preserve the Protestant Religion and Presbyterian Church Government" upon his or her accession.[90] Splits in the Church of Scotland, especially in the 19th century, led to the creation of various other Presbyterian churches in Scotland, including the Free Church of Scotland, which claims to be the constitutional continuator of the Church in Scotland and was founded in 1843. The Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland was formed in 1893 by some who left the Free Church over alleged weakening of her position and likewise claims to be the spiritual descendant of the Scottish Reformation. The Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales was founded in the late 1980s and organized themselves as a presbytery in 1996. As of 2016[update] they had 15 churches in the UK.[91]

text: The Presbyterian Church in Ireland is the largest Protestant denomination and second largest church in Northern Ireland. The Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster was founded on 17 March 1951 by the cleric and politician Ian Paisley. It has about 60 churches in Northern Ireland. The Presbyterian Church of Wales seceded from the Church of England in 1811 and formally formed itself into a separate body in 1823. The Non-subscribing Presbyterian Church of Ireland has 31 congregations in Northern Ireland,[92] with the first Presbytery being formed in Antrim in 1725.[93]

text: The United Reformed Church (URC), a union of Presbyterian and Congregational churches, consists of about 1,500 congregations[94] in England, Scotland and Wales. There are about 600 Congregational churches in the United Kingdom. In England there are three main groups, the Congregational Federation, the Evangelical Fellowship of Congregational Churches, and about 100 Congregational churches that are loosely federated with other congregations in the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches, or are unaffiliated. In Scotland the churches are mostly member of the Congregational Federation and in Wales which traditionally has a larger number of Congregationalists, most are members of the Union of Welsh Independents.

text: Methodism[edit]

text: The Methodist movement traces its origin to the evangelical awakening in the 18th century. The British Methodist Church, which has congregations throughout Great Britain, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man, Malta and Gibraltar, has around 290,000 members,[95] and 5,900 churches,[95] though only around 3,000 members in 50 congregations are in Scotland. In the 1960s, it made ecumenical overtures to the Church of England, aimed at church unity. Formally, these failed when they were rejected by the Church of England's General Synod in 1972. However, conversations and co-operation continued, leading on 1 November 2003 to the signing of a covenant between the two churches.[96]

text: The Methodist Church in Ireland covers the whole of the island of Ireland, including Northern Ireland where it is the fourth-largest denomination.

text: Other Methodist denominations in Britain include the Salvation Army, founded in 1865;[97] the Free Methodist Church, a holiness church; and the Church of the Nazarene.

text: Baptists[edit]

text: The Baptist Union of Great Britain, despite its name, covers just England and Wales.[98] There is a separate Baptist Union of Scotland and the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland is an all-Ireland organisation.[99] Other Baptist associations also exist in England, such as the Grace Baptist association and the Gospel Standard Baptists.

text: Charismatic and Pentecostalism[edit]

text: Assemblies of God in Great Britain are part of the World Assemblies of God Fellowship with over 600 churches in Great Britain.[100] Assemblies of God Ireland cover the whole of the island of Ireland, including Northern Ireland. The Apostolic Church commenced in the early part of the 20th century in South Wales and now has over 110 churches across the United Kingdom. Elim Pentecostal Church as of 2013[update] had over 500 churches across the United Kingdom.[100]

text: There is also a growing number of independent, charismatic churches that encourage Pentecostal practices as part of their worship. These are broadly grouped together as the British New Church Movement and could number up to 400,000 members. The phenomenon of immigrant churches and congregations that began with the arrival of the SS Empire Windrush from the West Indies in 1948 stands as a unique trend. West Indian congregations that started from this time include the Church of God, New Testament Assembly and New Testament Church of God.

text: Africans began to arrive in the early 1980s and established their own congregations. Foremost among these are Matthew Ashimolowo from Nigeria and his Kingsway International Christian Centre in London that may be the largest church in Western Europe.[101]

text: Eastern Orthodoxy[edit]

text: The Russian Orthodox Church has a Diocese of Sourozh, which covers Great Britain and Ireland,[102] and the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia also has a diocese in the same territory.[103] The Ecumenical Patriarchate has established the Archdiocese of Thyateira and Great Britain, led by Archbishop Gregorios,[104] that covers England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland as well as Malta. The Patriarchate of Antioch has 15 parishes and 7 missions within the Deanery of the United Kingdom and Ireland.[105] The Serbian Orthodox Church has nine parishes in the United Kingdom and missions in Dublin and Malta, under the Serbian Orthodox Eparchy of Britain and Scandinavia.[106] Other Eastern Orthodox Churches represented in the United Kingdom include the Georgian Orthodox Church, the Romanian Orthodox Church and the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.

text: Oriental Orthodoxy[edit]

text: The Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria has two regional Dioceses in the United Kingdom: the Diocese of Ireland, Scotland, North East England and its Affiliated Areas is led by Bishop Antony of Newcastle and the Diocese of the Midlands and its Affiliated Areas is led by Bishop Missael of Birmingham. There is also (part of the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate until 2015) the British Orthodox Church, (covering the British Isles) which is led by Metropolitan Seraphim of Glastonbury. In addition, there is one General Bishop in Stevenage, Bishop Angaelos. There are many Coptic Orthodox Churches in the United Kingdom that are directly the responsibility of Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria. Other Oriental Orthodox Churches represented in the United Kingdom include the Syriac Orthodox Church, the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church and the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church.

text: Other Trinitarian denominations[edit]

text: Other denominations and groups include the Seventh-day Adventist Church, the Seventh Day Baptists, the Plymouth Brethren,[107] and Newfrontiers.[108]

text: Non-Trinitarian denominations[edit]

text: Latter-day Saints[edit]

text: The first missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints to proselytise in the British Isles arrived in 1837. By 1900 as many as 100,000 converts had joined the faith, but most of these early members soon emigrated to the United States to join the main body of the church. From the 1950s emigration to the United States began to be discouraged and local congregations grew more rapidly. Today the church claims just over 186,000 members across the United Kingdom, in over 330 local congregations, known as 'wards' or 'branches'. The church also maintains two temples in England, the first opening in the London area in 1958, and the second completed in 1998 in Preston and known as the Preston England Temple. Preston is also the site of the first preaching by LDS missionaries in 1837, and is home to the oldest continually existing Latter Day Saint congregation anywhere in the world.[109][110] Restored 1994–2000, the Gadfield Elm Chapel in Worcestershire is the oldest extant chapel of the LDS Church.[111]

text: Other Non-Trinitarian denominations[edit]

text: Jehovah's Witnesses had 137,631 "publishers" (a term referring to members actively involved in preaching) in the United Kingdom in 2015.[112] The Church of Christ, Scientist is also represented in the UK. The General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches is the umbrella organisation for Unitarian, Free Christian and other liberal religious congregations in the United Kingdom. The Unitarian Christian Association was formed in 1991. There are an estimated 18,000 Christadelphians in the UK.

text: Quakers[edit]

text: The Britain Yearly Meeting is the umbrella body for the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in Great Britain, the Channel Isles and the Isle of Man. It has 14,260 adult members.[113] Northern Ireland comes under the umbrella of the Ireland Yearly Meeting.

text: Other faiths[edit]

text: Islam[edit]

text: Estimates in 2009 suggested a total of about 2.4 million Muslims over all the United Kingdom.[114][115] According to Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, the number of Muslims in Britain could be up to 3 million.[116] The vast majority of Muslims in the United Kingdom live in England and Wales: of 1,591,126 Muslims recorded at the 2001 Census, 1,546,626 were living in England and Wales, where they form 3 per cent of the population; 42,557 were living in Scotland, forming 0.8 per cent of the population;[117] and 1,943 were living in Northern Ireland.[118] Between 2001 and 2009 the Muslim population increased roughly 10 times faster than the rest of society.[119]

text: Most Muslim immigrants to the United Kingdom came from former colonies. The biggest groups of Muslims are of Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Indian and Arab origins,[120] with the remainder coming from Muslim-dominated areas such as Southwest Asia, Somalia, Malaysia, and Indonesia.[121] During the 18th century, lascars (sailors) who worked for the British East India Company settled in port towns with local wives.[122] These numbered only 24,037 in 1891 but 51,616 on the eve of World War I.[123] Naval cooks, including Sake Dean Mahomet, also came from what is now the Sylhet Division of Bangladesh.[124] From the 1950s onwards, the growing Muslim population has led to a number of notable Mosques being established, including East London Mosque, London Central Mosque, Manchester Central Mosque, London Markaz, and the Baitul Futuh of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. According to Kevin Brice, a researcher at the University of Wales, Trinity Saint David, thousands convert to Islam annually and there are approximately 100,000 converts to Islam in Britain, where they run two mosques.[125]

text: According to a Labour Force Survey estimate, the total number of Muslims in Great Britain in 2008 was 2,422,000, around 4 per cent of the total population.[126] Between 2004 and 2008, the Muslim population grew by more than 500,000.[126] In 2010, The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life estimated 2,869,000 Muslims in Great Britain.[127] The largest age-bracket within the British Muslim population were those under the age of 4, at 301,000 in September 2008.[126] The Muslim Council of Britain and the Islamic Forum of Europe are the umbrellas organisations for many local, regional and specialist Islamic organisations in the United Kingdom, although it is disputed how representative this organisation is of British Muslims as a whole.

text: Judaism[edit]

text: The Jewish Naturalisation Act, enacted in 1753, permitted the naturalisation of foreign Jews, but was repealed the next year. The first graduate from the University of Glasgow who was openly-known to be Jewish was in 1787. Unlike their English contemporaries, Scottish students were not required to take a religious oath. In 1841 Isaac Lyon Goldsmid was made baronet, the first Jew to receive a hereditary title. The first Jewish Lord Mayor of the City of London, Sir David Salomons, was elected in 1855, followed by the 1858 emancipation of the Jews. On 26 July 1858, Lionel de Rothschild was finally allowed to sit in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom when the law restricting the oath of office to Christians was changed. (Benjamin Disraeli, a baptised, teenage convert to Christianity of Jewish parentage, was already an MP at this time and rose to become Prime Minister in 1874.) In 1884 Nathan Mayer Rothschild, 1st Baron Rothschild became the first Jewish member of the British House of Lords; again Disraeli was already a member.

text: British Jews number around 300,000 with the United Kingdom having the fifth largest Jewish community worldwide.[128] However, this figure did not include Jews who identified 'by ethnicity only' in England and Wales or Scottish Jews who identified as Jewish by upbringing but held no current religion. A report in August 2007 by University of Manchester historian Dr Yaakov Wise stated that 75 per cent of all births in the Jewish community were to ultra-orthodox, Haredi parents, and that the increase of ultra-orthodox Jewry has led to a significant rise in the proportion of British Jews who are ultra-orthodox.[129]

text: However various studies suggest that within some Jewish communities and particularly in some strictly Orthodox areas, many residents ignored the voluntary question on religion following the advice of their religious leaders resulting in a serious undercount, therefore it is impossible to give an accurate number on the total UK Jewish population. It may be even more than double the official estimates, heavily powered by the very high birth rate of orthodox families and British people who are Jewish by origin but not religion; as it currently stands, the Jewish as ethnicity section is not documented on the census.[citation needed]

text: Bahá'í Faith[edit]

text: The Bahá'í Faith in the United Kingdom has a historical connection with the earliest phases of the Bahá'í Faith starting in 1845 and has had a major effect on the development of communities of the religion in far flung nations around the world. It is estimated that between 1951 and 1993, Bahá'ís from the United Kingdom settled in 138 countries.[130]

text: Asian religions[edit]

text: Buddhism[edit]

text: The earliest Buddhist influence on Britain came through its imperial connections with Southeast Asia, and as a result the early connections were with the Theravada traditions of Burma, Thailand, and Sri Lanka. The tradition of study resulted in the foundation of the Pali Text Society, which undertook the task of translating the Pali Canon of Buddhist texts into English. Buddhism as a path of practise was pioneered by the Theosophists, Madame Blavatsky and Colonel Olcott, and in 1880 they became the first Westerners to receive the refuges and precepts, the ceremony by which one traditionally becomes a Buddhist.

text: In 1924 London's Buddhist Society was founded, and in 1926 the Theravadin London Buddhist Vihara. The rate of growth was slow but steady through the century, and the 1950s saw the development of interest in Zen Buddhism. In 1967 Kagyu Samyé Ling Monastery and Tibetan Centre, now the largest Tibetan Buddhist centre in Western Europe, was founded in Scotland. The first home-grown Buddhist movement was also founded in 1967, the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order (now the Triratna Buddhist Community). There are some Soka Gakkai groups in the United Kingdom.

text: Hinduism[edit]

text: Hinduism was the religion of 558,810 people in Great Britain according to the 2001 census[131] but an estimate in a British newspaper in 2007 has put the figure as high as 1.5 million.[132] One Non-governmental organisation estimated as of 2007 that there are 800,000 Hindus in the United Kingdom.[133] Although most British Hindus live in England, with half living in London alone,[134] small but growing Hindu communities also exist in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

text: Jainism[edit]

text: As of 2006, there are around 25,000 Jains in the United Kingdom.[135]

text: One of the first Jain settlers, Champat Rai Jain, was in England during 1892–1897 to study law. He established the Rishabh Jain Lending Library in 1930. Later, he translated several Jain texts into English.[136]

text: Leicester houses one of the world's few Jain temples outside of India.[137] There is an Institute of Jainology at Greenford, London.[138]

text: Sikhism[edit]

text: Sikhism was recorded as the religion of 336,149 people in the United Kingdom at the time of the 2001 Census.[139] While England is home to the majority of Sikhs in the United Kingdom, small communities also exist in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

text: The first recorded Sikh settler in the United Kingdom was Maharaja Duleep Singh, dethroned and exiled in 1849 at the age of 14, after the Anglo-Sikh wars. The first Sikh Gurdwara (temple) was established in 1911, in Putney, London. The first wave of Sikh migration came in the 1950s, mostly of men from the Punjab seeking work in industries such as foundries and textiles. These new arrivals mostly settled in London, Birmingham and West Yorkshire. Thousands of Sikhs from East Africa followed.

text: Neopaganism[edit]

text: In the 2001 Census, a total of 42,262 people from England, Scotland, and Wales declared themselves to be pagans or adherents of Wicca. However, other surveys have led to estimates of around 250,000 or even higher.[140][141]

text: Wicca[edit]

text: In the United Kingdom, census figures do not allow an accurate breakdown of traditions within the Pagan heading, as a campaign by the Pagan Federation before the 2001 Census encouraged Wiccans, Heathens, Druids and others all to use the same write-in term 'Pagan' in order to maximise the numbers reported. For the first time, respondents were able to write in an affiliation not covered by the checklist of common religions, and a total of 42,262 people from England, Scotland and Wales declared themselves to be Pagans by this method. These figures were not immediately analysed by the Office for National Statistics, but were released after an application by the Pagan Federation of Scotland.[142]

text: Druidry[edit]

text: During the Iron Age, Celtic polytheism was the predominant religion in the area now known as England. Neo-Druidism grew out of the Celtic revival in 18th century Romanticism. A 2012 Druid analysis estimates that there are roughly 11,000 Druids in Britain.[143]

text: Religion and society[edit]

text: Religion and politics[edit]

text: Though the main political parties are secular, the formation of the Labour Party was influenced by Christian socialism and by leaders from a nonconformist background, such as Keir Hardie. On the other hand, the Church of England was once nicknamed "the Conservative Party at prayer", though this has changed since the 1980s as the Church has moved to the left of the Conservative Party on social and economic issues.[144]

text: Some minor parties are explicitly 'religious' in ideology: two 'Christian' parties – the Christian Party and the Christian Peoples Alliance, fielded joint candidates at the 2009 European Parliament elections and increased their share of the vote to come eighth, with 249,493 votes (1.6% of total votes cast), and in London, where the CPA had three councillors,[145] the Christian parties picked up 51,336 votes (2.9% of the vote), up slightly from the 45,038 gained in 2004.[146]

text: The Church of England is represented in the UK Parliament by 26 bishops (the Lords Spiritual) and the British monarch is a member of the church (required under Article 2 of the Treaty of Union) as well as its Supreme Governor.[147] The Lords Spiritual have seats in the House of Lords and debate government policies affecting the whole of the United Kingdom. The Church of England also has the right to draft legislative measures (related to religious administration) through the General Synod that can then be passed into law by Parliament.[148] The Prime Minister, regardless of personal beliefs, plays a key role in the appointment of Church of England bishops, although in July 2007 Gordon Brown proposed reforms of the Prime Minister's ability to affect Church of England appointments.[149]

text: Religion and education[edit]

text: Religious education and Collective Worship are compulsory in many state schools in England and Wales by virtue of clauses 69 and 70 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. Clause 71 of the act gives parents the right to withdraw their children from Religious Education and Collective Worship[150] and parents should be informed of their right in accordance with guidelines published by the Department for Education; "a school should ensure parents or carers are informed of this right".[151] The content of the religious education is decided locally by the Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education.

text: In England and Wales, a significant number of state funded schools are faith schools with the vast majority Christian (mainly either of Church of England or Catholic) though there are also Jewish, Muslim and Sikh faith schools. Faith schools follow the same national curriculum as state schools, though with the added ethos of the host religion. Until 1944 there was no requirement for state schools to provide religious education or worship, although most did so. The Education Act 1944 introduced a requirement for a daily act of collective worship and for religious education but did not define what was allowable under these terms. The act contained provisions to allow parents to withdraw their children from these activities and for teachers to refuse to participate. The Education Reform Act 1988 introduced a further requirement that the majority of collective worship be "wholly or mainly of a broadly Christian character".[152] According to a 2003 report from the Office for Standards in Education, a "third of governing bodies do not fulfil their statutory duties adequately, sometimes because of a failure to pursue thoroughly enough such matters as arranging a daily act of collective worship."[153]

text: In Scotland, the majority of schools are non-denominational, but separate Catholic schools, with an element of control by the Catholic Church, are provided within the state system. The Education (Scotland) Act 1980 imposes a statutory duty on all local authorities to provide religious education and religious observance in Scottish schools. These are currently defined by the Scottish Government's Curriculum for Excellence (2005).[154]

text: Northern Ireland has a highly segregated education system. 95 per cent of pupils attend either maintained (Catholic) schools or controlled schools, which are open to children of all faiths and none, though in practise most pupils are from the Protestant community.[citation needed]

text: Religion and prison[edit]

text: Prisoners are given religious freedom and privileges while in prison. This includes access to a chaplain or religious advisor, authorised religious reading materials,[155] ability to change faith, as well as other privileges.[156] Several faith-based outreach programmes provide faith promoting guidance and counselling.[157][158][159]

text: Every three months, the Ministry of Justice collects data, including religious affiliation, of all UK prisoners and is published as the Offender Management Caseload Statistics.[160] This data is then compiled into reports and published in the House of Commons library.

text: On 31 March 2015 the prison population of England and Wales was recorded as 49% Christian, 14% Muslim, 2% Buddhist, 2% other religions and 31% no religion.[161]

text: Religion and the media[edit]

text: The Communications Act 2003 requires certain broadcasters in the United Kingdom to carry a "suitable quantity and range of programmes" dealing with religion and other beliefs, as part of their public service broadcasting.[162] Prominent examples of religious programming include the BBC television programme Songs of Praise, aired on a Sunday evening with an average weekly audience of 2.5 million,[163] and the Thought for the Day slot on BBC Radio 4. Channels also offer documentaries on, or from the perspective of a criticism of organised religion. A significant example is Richard Dawkins' two-part Channel 4 documentary, The Root of all Evil?. Open disbelief of, or even mockery of organised religion, is not regarded as a taboo in the British media, though it has occasionally provoked controversy – for example, the movie Monty Python's Life of Brian,[164] the poem "The Love That Dares to Speak Its Name",[165] and the musical Jerry Springer: The Opera,[166] all of which involved characters based on Jesus, were subject to public outcry and blasphemy allegations, while The Satanic Verses, a novel by British Indian author Salman Rushdie which includes a fantasy sequence about Muhammed, caused global protests including several by British Muslims.[167] British comedy has a history of parody on the subject of religion.[citation needed]

text: Religion and social identity : Saints parts of the United Kingdom society.[edit]

text:
Saint George is the regional saint for England.
Saint Andrew is the regional saint for Scotland.
Saint David is the regional saint for Wales.
Saint Patrick is the regional saint for Ireland.[168]

text: Interfaith dialogue, tolerance, religious discrimination and secularism[edit]

text: The Interfaith Network for the United Kingdom encompasses the main faith organisations of the United Kingdom, either directly with denominational important representatives or through joint bodies for these denominations, promotes local interfaith cooperation, promotes understanding between faiths and convenes meetings and conferences where social and religious questions of concern to the different faith communities can be examined together, including meetings of the Network's ‘Faith Communities Consultative Forum’.[169]

text: Ecumenical friendship and cooperation has gradually developed between Christian denominations and where inter-sect prejudice exists this has via education and employment policy been made a pressing public matter in dealing with its two prominent examples – sectarianism in Glasgow and Northern Ireland – where segregation is declining.

text: In the early 21st century, the Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006 made it an offence in England and Wales to incite hatred against a person on the grounds of their religion. The common law offences of blasphemy and blasphemous libel were abolished with the coming into effect of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008 on 8 July 2008.

text: 2005–2010 polls have shown that public opinion in the United Kingdom generally tends towards a suspicion or outright disapproval of radical or evangelical religiosity, though moderate groups and individuals are rarely subject to less favourable treatment from society or employers.[170]

text: The Equality Act 2010 prohibits discrimination against people on the basis of religion, in the supply of goods and services and selection for employment, subject to very limited exceptions (such as the right of schools and religious institutions to appoint paid ministers).

text: There is no strict separation of church and state in the United Kingdom. Accordingly, most public officials may display the most common identifiers of a major religion in the course of their duties – for example, rosary beads. Chaplains are provided in the armed forces (see Royal Army Chaplains' Department, RAF Chaplains Branch) and in prisons.

text: Although school uniform codes are generally drawn up flexibly enough to accommodate compulsory items of religious dress, some schools have banned wearing the crucifix in a necklace, arguing that to do so is not a requirement of Christianity where they prohibit all other necklaces. Post-adolescence, the wearing of a necklace is permitted in some F.E. colleges who permit religious insignia necklaces on a wider basis, which are without exception permitted at universities.[171]

text: Some churches have warned that the Equality Act 2010 could force them to go against their faith when hiring staff.[172]

text: In 2011 two judges of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales upheld previous statements in the country's jurisprudence that the (non-canon) laws of the United Kingdom 'do not include Christianity'. Therefore, a local authority was acting lawfully in denying a Christian married couple the right to foster care because of stated negative views on homosexuality. In terms of the rights recognised "in the case of fostering arrangements at least, the right of homosexuals to equality should take precedence over the right of Christians to manifest their beliefs and moral values."[173]

text: National and regional differences[edit]

text: Levels of affiliation vary between different part of the UK, particularly between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The percentages declaring themselves Christians in the 2011 Census are 59.4 in England, 57.6 in Wales and 53.8 in Scotland, which decreased by 12.3, 14.3, and 11.3 percentage points respectively from the census of 2001.[174][175][176][177] This is argued to make them the fastest secularising nations in history.[178] Northern Ireland remains one of the most religious nations in western Europe[citation needed] with 82.3% of the population claiming Christian affiliation, with a decline of only 3.5% by the 2011 census, while "other religions" have increased in membership.[174] Religion has been seen as both a product and a cause of political divisions in Northern Ireland.[179]

text: Main religious leaders[edit]

text:
The Queen is the Supreme Governor of the Church of England, with the Archbishops of Canterbury and York below her.[180]
The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland presides over the annual Assembly, but does not lead, the Church of Scotland.
The Primus of Scotland is the presiding bishop of the Scottish Episcopal Church.
The Great Imam is Sheikh Mawlana Abdul Qayum, one of the most famous scholar of Europe,[181] who serves the largest Muslim congregation in the Great Britain.[182]
The Archbishop of Westminster is the leader of the Catholic bishops of England and Wales.
The de facto head of the Catholic Church in Scotland is the most senior archbishop, currently Leo Cushley, Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh (see Bishops' Conference of Scotland).
The Primate of All Ireland exercises his ecclesiastical jurisdiction in Northern Ireland as well as the Republic of Ireland.
The Archbishop of Wales is one of the six diocesan bishops of the Church in Wales, chosen by his colleagues to hold the higher designation in addition to his own diocese.
The Chief Rabbi is the title of the leader of Orthodox Judaism in the Commonwealth.
The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland presides over, but does not lead, the Church.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is led by the Europe Area Presidency. The current area president is Elder Erich W. Kopischke with Elder Gérald J. Caussé and Elder José A. Teixeira as first and second counsellors respectively.
The Caliph Masih of the Ahmadiyya Community is Mirza Masroor Ahmad, and Fazl Mosque is his headquarters.

text: Notable places of worship[edit]

text: CHRISTIAN

text:
Westminster Cathedral – Catholic
St Mary's Cathedral, Edinburgh – Catholic
Canterbury Cathedral – Church of England and Mother Church of England
York Minster – Church of England
Durham Cathedral – Church of England
Salisbury Cathedral – Church of England
Dormition Cathedral, London – Russian Orthodox
Holy Trinity Cathedral, Down – Church of Ireland
Kingsway International Christian Centre – Charismatic
London England Temple – Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Metropolitan Tabernacle – Baptist
St Anne's Cathedral, Belfast – Church of Ireland
St David's Cathedral – Church in Wales
St Giles' Cathedral, Edinburgh – Church of Scotland
St Lazar's Church, Bournville – Serbian Orthodox
St Mary's Cathedral, Edinburgh – Scottish Episcopal
St Paul's Cathedral – Church of England
St Sarkis, Kensington – Armenian Apostolic
St Sophia's Cathedral, London – Greek Orthodox
Westminster Abbey – Church of England
Westminster Central Hall – Methodist

text: JEWISH

text:
Bevis Marks Synagogue – Jewish
New West End Synagogue – Jewish

text: ISLAMIC

text:
London Central Mosque – Islamic
North London Central Mosque – Islamic

text: OTHERS

text:
Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha – Sikh
Neasden Temple – Hindu


document_title: Tax-Free Savings Account

question_text: when did the tax free savings account start in canada

root

text: Tax-Free Savings Account

text: History[edit]

text: The first Tax-Free Savings Account was introduced by Jim Flaherty, then Canadian federal Minister of Finance, in the 2008 federal budget. It came into effect on January 1, 2009.[2]

tag: p

text: This measure was supported by the C.D. Howe Institute, which stated; “This tax policy gem is very good news for Canadians, and Mr. Flaherty and his government deserve credit for a novel program”.[3] Furthermore, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business,[4] Canadian Bankers Association,[5] Bank of Montreal economist Doug Porter,[4] the Canadian Chamber of Commerce,[6] and the Canadian Taxpayers Federation[7] also supported this tax policy. In 2015 South Africa introduced TFSA accounts to encourage low to middle-class citizens to save money.

text: Canadian features[edit]

text: The TFSA is an account in which Canadian residents 18 years and older can save or invest. Income earned on contributions is not taxed. The TFSA account-holder may withdraw money from the account at any time, free of taxes.

text: Contribution room[edit]

text: The maximum annual contribution room for each year prior to 2013 was $5,000 per year. Beginning in 2013 it was increased to $5,500 per year.[8] The $5,500 annual contribution limit was indexed to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), in $500 increments, in order to account for inflation.[9]

text: The 2015 federal budget raised the contribution limit to $10,000, and eliminated indexation for inflation, beginning with the 2015 tax year.[10] However, in December 2015 a newly elected government proposed to restore the pre-2015 contribution limit of $5,500 for 2016, which will be indexed for inflation after that.[11][12][13]

text: As of January 1, 2018, the total cumulative contribution room for a TFSA is $57,500 for those who have been 18 years or older and residents of Canada for all eligible years.

text:
Years
TFSA Annual Limit
Cumulative Total

2009–2012
$5,000
$20,000

2013–2014
$5,500
$31,000

2015
$10,000[14]
$41,000

2016–2018
$5,500
$57,500

tag: table

text: Any unused contribution room under the cap can be carried forward to subsequent years, without any upward limit.[15]

text: Eligible investments[edit]

text: A TFSA can hold any investments that are RRSP-eligible, including publicly traded shares on eligible exchanges, eligible shares of private corporations, certain debt obligations, instalment receipts, money denominated in any currency, trust interests including mutual funds and real estate investment trusts, annuity contracts, warrants, rights and options, registered investments, royalty units, partnership units, and depository receipts.[16]

text: Creditor protection[edit]

text: This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

text: Assets within a TFSA are not protected from creditors in the event of bankruptcy or a financial judgement that results from legal proceedings against the account-holder, whereas those within an RRSP are protected. Unless the investments in the TFSA are in a segregated fund (which then follows the Insurance act rules).

text: Over-contributions[edit]

text: A withdrawal in any year will increase the available contribution room, but not in that current calendar year – it can only be re-contributed starting on January 1 of the following year. An over-contribution will occur if an individual (whose TFSA contributions have already been maximized for the year) mistakenly believes that a withdrawal immediately creates contribution room and re-contributes the withdrawn funds later the same calendar year.

text: In the 2012 tax year, the CRA sent notices to about 74,000 taxpayers about TFSA over-contributions, out of about nine million TFSAs existing at the end of 2012. About 76,000 notices were sent in 2011 and 103,000 in 2010.[17]

text: Foreign dividend withholding tax[edit]

text: Unlike an RRSP, a TFSA is not considered by the United States Internal Revenue Service to be a pension plan. Therefore, the tax treaty between the U.S. and Canada foregoing the U.S. withholding tax on dividends in registered pension plans does not apply to TFSA accounts, subjecting Canadians in most cases to a 15% U.S. tax withheld on dividends paid on shares of U.S. corporations. The tax withheld cannot be credited against other payable taxes as would be the case with non-registered accounts.

text: To get around this problem, one exchange-traded fund manager, Horizons ETFs Group, offers an ETF that uses swap contracts to replicate the return of the underlying dividend-paying stocks in the fund without actually holding any of those stocks. However, due to the fees charged by the counterparty to the swap agreement, as well as the fund's own management fee, its expenses exceed the actual withholding tax payable for the underlying stocks, if those were to be held directly in the TFSA.[18][19][20][21][22][23]

text: Risks for U.S. citizens and U.S residents[edit]

text: Canadian mutual funds held in TFSAs are generally considered by the IRS to be investments in a passive foreign investment company (PFIC), and must be reported as such (on form 8621) by U.S. citizens. PFICs can be very disadvantageous as, absent certain elections, "excess" distributions are always taxed at the highest marginal rate. Also, income is averaged over the duration of the investment, and interest is then charged from the date the income is deemed to have occurred, resulting in effective tax rates as high as 50% or more.[24][25] The TFSA may also be a grantor foreign trust from the perspective of the U.S. U.S. citizens with a grantor foreign trust are required to file IRS Forms 3520A (due March 15) and 3520 (due at the same time as Form 1040). These forms are both complicated and both involve potentially large penalties for late filing. Like other non-U.S. accounts the TFSA may also need to be included on a U.S. citizen's FBAR and tax-FBAR. Earnings inside the TFSA are taxed by the U.S.

text: South African features[edit]

text: The lifetime contribution limit is R500000 and the annual limit is R33000.[26]

text: Comparison to RRSP[edit]

text: This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (April 2018) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

text: The tax treatment of a TFSA is the opposite of a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP). There is an income tax deduction for contributions to an RRSP, and withdrawals of contributions and investment income are all taxable. In contrast, there is no tax deduction for contributions to a TFSA, and there is no tax on withdrawals of investment income or contributions from the account.

text: Unlike an RRSP, which must be withdrawn before the holder turns 71, the TFSA does not expire.

text: If an account-holder withdraws funds from a TFSA, his or her contribution room is increased by that amount on the 1st of January after the withdrawal. In an RRSP, the contribution room is not increased to reflect withdrawals.

text: The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) describes the difference between a TFSA and an RRSP as follows: "An RRSP is primarily intended for retirement. The TFSA is like an RRSP for everything else in your life." Interest paid on money borrowed to invest in either TFSA or RRSP is not tax deductible.[27]

text: Similar accounts in other countries[edit]

text: The TFSA is similar to a Roth Individual Retirement Arrangement in United States, although the TFSA has fewer restrictions.[clarification needed][28] In the UK, similar tax advantages have been available in Individual Savings Accounts since 1999.[29]


document_title: Pokhran-II

question_text: who was indian president when first nuclear test were conduct

text: Pokhran-II

text: India's nuclear bomb project[edit]

text: Efforts towards building the nuclear bomb, infrastructure, and research on related technologies have been undertaken by India since World War II. Origins of India's nuclear program dates back to 1944 when nuclear physicist Homi Bhabha began persuading the Indian Congress towards the harnessing of nuclear energy— a year later he established the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR).

text: In 1950s, the preliminary studies were carried out at the BARC and plans were developed to produce plutonium and other bomb components. In 1962, India and China engaged in the disputed northern front, and was further intimidated with Chinese nuclear test in 1964. Direction towards militarisation of the nuclear program slowed down when Vikram Sarabhai became its head and little interest of Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri in 1965.

text: After Indira Gandhi became Prime Minister in 1966, the nuclear program was consolidated when physicist Raja Ramanna joined the efforts. Another nuclear test by China eventually led to India's decision toward building nuclear weapons in 1967 and conducted its first nuclear test, Smiling Buddha, in 1974.[6]

text: Post-Smiling Buddha[edit]

text: Responding to Smiling Buddha, the Nuclear Suppliers Group severely affected the India's nuclear program.[7] The world's major nuclear powers imposed technological embargo on India and Pakistan, which was technologically racing to meet with India's challenge.[7] The nuclear program struggled for years to gain credibility and its progress crippled by the lack of indigenous resources and dependent on imported technology and technical assistance.[7] At IAEA, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi declared that India's nuclear program was not militarising despite authorising preliminary work on the hydrogen bomb design.[7]

text: As an aftermath of the state emergency in 1975 that resulted in the collapse of the Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's government, the nuclear program was left with a vacuum of political leadership and even basic management.[7] Work on the hydrogen bomb design continued under M. Srinivasan, a mechanical engineer, but progress was slow.[7]

text: The nuclear program received little attention from Prime Minister Morarji Desai who was renowned for his peace advocacy.[7]  In 1978, Prime Minister Desai transferred physicist Ramanna to Indian MoD, and his government was not entirely without progress in nuclear program and had the program continue to grow at a desirable rate.[7][8]

text: Disturbing news came from Pakistan when the world discovered the Pakistan's clandestine atomic bomb program.[7] Contrary to India's nuclear program, Pakistan's atomic bomb program was akin to United States's Manhattan Project, it was under military oversight with civilian scientists in charge of the scientific aspects of the program.[7]  The Pakistani atomic bomb program was well funded and organised by then; India realised that Pakistan was likely to succeed in its project in matter of two years.[7]

text: In 1980, the general elections marked the return of Indira Gandhi and the nuclear program began to gain momentum under Ramanna in 1981. Requests for additional nuclear tests were continued to be denied by the government when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi saw Pakistan began exercising the brinkmanship, though the nuclear program continued to advance.[7] Initiation towards hydrogen bomb began as well as the launch of the missile programme began under Late president Dr. Abdul Kalam, who was then an aerospace engineer.[7]

text: Political momentum: 1988–1998[edit]

text: In 1989, the general elections witnessed the Janata Dal party led by V.P. Singh, forming the government.[9] Prime Minister V.P. Singh down played the relations with the Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto whose Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) won the general elections in 1988. Foreign relations between India and Pakistan began to severely worsen when India began charging Pakistan of supporting the militancy in Jammu and Kashmir.[9] During this time, the missile program succeeded in the development of the Prithvi missiles.

text: Successive governments in India decided to observe this temporary moratorium for fear of inviting international criticism.[7] The Indian public had been supportive towards the nuclear tests which ultimately led Prime Minister Narasimha Rao deciding to conduct further tests in 1995.[9] Plans were halted after American spy satellites picked up signs of preparations for nuclear testing at Pokhran Test Range in Rajasthan.[9] President Bill Clinton and his administration exerted enormous pressure on Prime Minister Narasimha Rao to stop the preparations.[9] Responding to India, Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto issued harsh and severe statements against India on Pakistan's news channels; thus putting stress on the relations between two countries.[10]

text: Diplomatic tension escalated between two countries when Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto raised the Kashmir issue at the United Nations in 1995[11][12].[13] In a speech delivered by then-Speaker National Assembly Yousaf Raza Gillani, stressed the "Kashmir issue" as continue to endanger the peace and security in the region.[13] The Indian delegation headed by Atal Bihari Vajpayee at the United Nations, reiterated that the "UN resolutions only call upon Pakistan— the occupying force to vacate the "Jammu and Kashmir Area."[13]

text: 1998 Indian general elections[edit]

text: The BJP, came to power in 1998 general elections with an exclusive public mandate.[4] BJP's political might had been growing steadily in strength over the past decade over several issues.

text: In Pakistan, the similar conservative force, the PML(N), was also in power with an exclusive mandate led by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif who defeated the leftist PPP led by Benazir Bhutto in general elections held in 1997.[14] During the BJP campaign, Atal Bihari Vajpayee indulged in grandstanding— such as when he declared on 25 February that his government would "take back that part of Kashmir that is under Pakistan's control."[4] Before this declaration, the BJP platform had clear intention to "exercise the option to induct nuclear weapons" and "India should become an openly nuclear power to garner the respect on the world stage that India deserved."[4] By 18 March 1998, Vajpayee had publicly begun his lobbying for nuclear explosion and declared that "there is no compromise on national security; all options including the nuclear options will be exercised to protect security and sovereignty."[4]

text: Consultation began between Prime Minister Vajpayee, Dr.Abdul Kalam, R. Chidambaram and officials of the Indian DAE on nuclear options. Chidambaram briefed Prime Minister Vajpayee extensively on the nuclear program; Abdul Kalam presented the status of the missile program. On 28 March 1998, Prime Minister Vajpayee asked the scientists to make preparations in the shortest time possible, and preparations were hastily made.[15]

text: It was time of tense atmosphere when Pakistan, at a Conference on Disarmament, offered a peace rhetoric agreement with India for "an equal and mutual restraint in conventional, missile and nuclear fields."[4] Pakistan's equation was later reemphasised on 6 April and the momentum in India for nuclear tests began to build up which strengthened Vajpayee's position to order the tests.[4]

text: Preparations for the test[edit]

text: Unlike Pakistan's weapon–testing laboratories, there was very little that India could do to hide its activity at Pokhran.[16] Contrary to high-altitude granite mountains in Pakistan, the bushes are sparse and the dunes in the Rajasthan Desert don't provide much cover from probing satellites.[16] The Indian intelligence had been aware of United States spy satellites and the American CIA had been detecting Indian test preparations since 1995; therefore, the tests required complete secrecy in India and also needed to avoid detection by other countries.[16] The 58th Engineer Regiment of Indian Army's Corps of Engineers was commissioned to prepare the test sites without being probed by the United States spy satellites. The 58th Engineer's commander Colonel Gopal Kaushik supervised the test preparations and ordered his "staff officers take all measures to ensure total secrecy."[16]

text: Extensive planning was done by a very small group of scientists, senior military officers and senior politicians to ensure that the test preparations would remain secret, and even senior members of the Indian government didn't know what was going on. The chief scientific adviser and the Director of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Dr. Abdul Kalam, and Dr. R. Chidambaram, the Director of the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), were the chief coordinators of this test planning.[4] The scientists and engineers of the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), the Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research (AMDER), and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) were involved in the nuclear weapon assembly, layout, detonation and obtaining test data.[4] A very small group of senior scientists were involved in the detonation process, all scientists were required to wear army uniforms to preserve the secrecy of the tests. Since 1995, the 58th Engineer Regiment had learned to avoid satellite detection.[4] Work was mostly done during night, and equipment was returned to the original place to give the impression that it was never moved.[4]

text: Bomb shafts were dug under camouflage netting and the dug-out sand was shaped like dunes. Cables for sensors were covered with sand and concealed using native vegetation.[4] Scientists would not depart for Pokhran in groups of two or three.[4] They travelled to destinations other than Pokhran under pseudonyms, and were then transported by the army. Technical staff at the test range wore military uniform, to prevent detection in satellite images.[16]

text: Nuclear weapon designs and development[edit]

text: Development and test teams[edit]

text: The main technical personnel involved in the operation were:[1]

text:
Project Chief Coordinators
Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam (later, President of India), Scientific Adviser to the prime minister and Head of the DRDO.
Dr. R. Chidambaram, Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission and the Department of Atomic energy.
Defence Research & Development Organization (DRDO)
Dr. K. Santhanam; Director, Test Site Preparations.
Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research
Dr. G. R. Dikshitulu; Senior Research Scientist B.S.O.I Group, Nuclear Materials Acquisition
Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC)
Dr. Anil Kakodkar, Director of BARC.
Dr. Satinder Kumar Sikka, Director; Thermonuclear Weapon Development.
Dr. M. S. Ramakumar, Director of Nuclear Fuel and Automation Manufacturing Group; Director, Nuclear Component Manufacture.
Dr. D.D. Sood, Director of Radiochemistry and Isotope Group; Director, Nuclear Materials Acquisition.
Dr. S.K. Gupta, Solid State Physics and Spectroscopy Group; Director, Device Design & Assessment.
Dr. G. Govindraj, Associate Director of Electronic and Instrumentation Group; Director, Field Instrumentation.

tag: ul

text: Movement and logistics[edit]

text: Three laboratories of the DRDO were involved in designing, testing and producing components for the bombs, including the advanced detonators, the implosion and high-voltage trigger systems. These were also responsible for weaponising, systems engineering, aerodynamics, safety interlocks and flight trials.[1] The bombs were transported in four Indian Army trucks under the command of Colonel Umang Kapur; all devices from BARC were relocated at 3 am on 1 May 1998. From the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, the bombs were flown in an Indian Air Force's AN-32 plane to the Jaisalmer army base. They were transported to Pokhran in an army convoy of four trucks, and this required three trips. The devices were delivered to the device preparation building, which was designated as 'Prayer Hall'.[1]

text: The test sites was organised into two government groups and were fired separately, with all devices in a group fired at the same time. The first group consisted of the thermonuclear device (Shakti I), the fission device (Shakti II), and a sub-kiloton device (Shakti III). The second group consisted of the remaining two sub-kiloton devices Shakti IV and V. It was decided that the first group would be tested on 11 May and the second group on 13 May. The thermonuclear device was placed in a shaft code named 'White House', which was over 200 metres (660 ft) deep, the fission bomb was placed in a 150 metres (490 ft) deep shaft code named 'Taj Mahal', and the first sub-kiloton device in 'Kumbhkaran'. The first three devices were placed in their respective shafts on 10 May, and the first device to be placed was the sub-kiloton device in the 'Kumbhkaran' shaft, which was sealed by the army engineers by 8:30 pm. The thermonuclear device was lowered and sealed into the 'White House' shaft by 4 am, and the fission device being placed in the 'Taj Mahal' shaft was sealed at 7:30 am, which was 90 minutes before the planned test time. The shafts were L-shaped, with a horizontal chamber for the test device.[1]

text: The timing of the tests depended on the local weather conditions, with the wind being the critical factor. The tests were underground, but due to a number of shaft seal failures that had occurred during tests conducted by the United States, the Soviet Union, and the United Kingdom, the sealing of the shaft could not be guaranteed to be leak-proof. By early afternoon, the winds had died down and the test sequence was initiated. Dr. K. Santhanam of the DRDO, in charge of the test site preparations, gave the two keys that activated the test countdown to Dr. M. Vasudev, the range safety officer, who was responsible for verifying that all test indicators were normal. After checking the indicators, Vasudev handed one key each to a representative of BARC and the DRDO, who unlocked the countdown system together. At 3:45 pm the three devices were detonated.[1]

text: Specifications and detonation[edit]

text: Five nuclear devices were Made during Operation Shakti.[17] All devices were weapon-grade plutonium[1] and they were:[1]

text:
Shakti I – A thermonuclear device yielding 45 kt, but designed for up to 200 kt.
Shakti II – A plutonium implosion design yielding 15 kt and intended as a warhead that could be delivered by bomber or missile. It was an improvement of the device detonated in the 1974 Smiling Buddha (Pokhran-I) test of 1974, developed using simulations on the PARAM supercomputer.
Shakti III – An experimental linear implosion design that used "non-weapon grade"[18] plutonium, but which likely omitted the material required for fusion, yielding 0.3 kt.
Shakti IV- A 0.5 kt experimental device.
Shakti V – A 0.2 kt experimental device.

text: An additional, sixth device (Shakti VI) is suspected to have been present but not detonated.[1]

text: At 3:43 pm IST; three nuclear bombs (specifically, the Shakti I, II and III) were detonated simultaneously, as measured by international seismic monitors.[4] On 13 May, at 12.21 p.m.IST 6:51 UTC, two sub-kiloton devices (Shakti IV and V) were detonated. Due to their very low yield, these explosions were not detected by any seismic station.[4] On 13 May 1998, India declared the series of tests to be over after this.[19]

text: Announcement[edit]

text: Following the Pokhran-II tests, India became the sixth country to join the nuclear club.[20] Shortly after the tests, a press meet was convened at the Prime Minister's residence in New Delhi. Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee appeared before the press corps and made the following short statement:

text:
“

Today, at 15:45 hours, India conducted three underground nuclear tests in the Pokhran range. The tests conducted today were with a fission device, a low yield device and a thermonuclear device. The measured yields are in line with expected values. Measurements have also confirmed that there was no release of radioactivity into the atmosphere. These were contained explosions like the experiment conducted in May 1974. I warmly congratulate the scientists and engineers who have carried out these successful tests.[21]

”

text: Reactions to tests[edit]

text: Domestic reactions[edit]

text: News of the tests were greeted with jubilation and large-scale approval by society in India.[22] The Bombay Stock Exchange registered significant gains. Newspapers and television channels praised the government for its bold decision; editorials were full of praise for the country's leadership and advocated the development of an operational nuclear arsenal for the country's armed forces.[22] The Indian opposition, led by Congress Party criticised the Vajpayee administration for carrying out the series of nuclear tests.[22] The Congress Party spokesman, Salman Khursheed, accused the BJP of trying to use the tests for political ends rather than to enhance the country's national security.[22]

text: By the time India had conducted tests, the country had a total of $44bn in loans in 1998, from IMF and the World Bank.[23] The industrial sectors of the Indian economy such as the chemicals industry, were likely to be hurt by sanctions.[23] The Western consortium companies, which had invested heavily in India, especially in construction, computing and telecoms, were generally the ones who were harmed by the sanctions.[23] In 1998, Indian government announced that it had already allowed for some economic response and was willing to take the consequences.[23]

text: International reactions[edit]

text: United States[edit]

text: The United States issued a strong statement condemning India and promised that sanctions would follow. The American intelligence community was embarrassed as there had been "a serious intelligence failure of the decade" in detecting the preparations for the test.[24]

text: In keeping with its preferred approach to foreign policy in recent decades, and in compliance with the 1994 anti-proliferation law, the United States imposed economic sanctions on India.[5] The sanctions on India consisted of cutting off all assistance to India except humanitarian aid, banning the export of certain defence material and technologies, ending American credit and credit guarantees to India, and requiring the US to oppose lending by international financial institutions to India.[25]

text: From 1998–1999, the United States held series of bilateral talks with India over the issue of India becoming party of the CTBT and NPT.[26] In addition, the United States also made an unsuccessful attempt of holding talks regarding the rollback of India's nuclear program.[27] India took a firm stand against the CTBT and refusing to be signatory party of it despite under pressure by the US President Bill Clinton, and noted the treaty as it was not consistent with India's national security interest.[27]

text: Canada, Japan, and other countries[edit]

text: Strong criticism was drawn from Canada on India's actions and its High Commissioner.[28] Sanctions were also imposed by Japan on India and consisted of freezing all new loans and grants except for humanitarian aid to India.[29]

text: Some other nations also imposed sanctions on India, primarily in the form of suspension of foreign aid to India and government-to-government credit lines.[30] However, the United Kingdom, France, and Russia refrained from condemning India.[30]

text: China[edit]

text: On 12 May the Chinese Foreign Ministry stated: "The Chinese government is seriously concerned about the nuclear tests conducted by India," and that the tests "run counter to the current international trend and are not conducive to peace and stability in South Asia.".[31] The next day the Chinese Foreign Ministry issued the statement clearly stating that "it is shocked and strongly condemned" the Indian nuclear tests and called for the international community to "adopt a unified stand and strongly demand that India immediate stop development of nuclear weapons".[32] China further rejected India's stated rationale of needing nuclear capabilities to counter a Chinese threat as "totally unreasonable".[32] In a meeting with Masayoshi Takemura of Democratic Party of Japan, Foreign Minister of the People's Republic of China Qian Qichen was quoted as saying that India's nuclear tests were a "serious matter," particularly because they were conducted in light of the fact that more than 140 countries have signed the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. "It is even more unacceptable that India claims to have conducted the tests to counter what it called a "China threat".[32] On 24 November 1998, the Chinese Embassy, New Delhi issued a formal statement:

text: (sic).... But regrettably, India conducted nuclear tests last May, which has run against the contemporary historical trend and seriously affected peace and stability in South Asia. Pakistan also conducted nuclear tests later on. India's nuclear tests have not only led to the escalation of tensions between India and Pakistan and provocation of nuclear arms races in South Asia, but also dealt a heavy blow to international nuclear disarmament and the global nonproliferation regime. It is only natural that India's nuclear tests have met with extensive condemnation and aroused serious concern from the international community.

text: Pakistan[edit]

text: The most vehement and strong reaction to India's nuclear explosion was from a neighbouring country, Pakistan. Great ire was raised in Pakistan, which issued a severe statement blaming India for instigating a nuclear arms race in the region.[4] Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif vowed that his country would give a suitable reply to India.[4] The day after the first tests, Foreign Minister Gohar Ayub Khan indicated that Pakistan was ready to conduct a nuclear test. He stated: "Pakistan is prepared to match India, we have the capability.... We in Pakistan will maintain a balance with India in all fields", he said in an interview. "We are in a headlong arms race on the subcontinent."[4]

text: On 13 May 1998, Pakistan bitterly condemned the tests, and Foreign Minister Gohar Ayub was quoted as saying that Indian leadership seemed to "have gone berserk [sic] and was acting in a totally unrestrained way."[34] Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was much more subdued, maintaining ambiguity about whether a test would be conducted in response: "We are watching the situation and we will take appropriate action with regard to our security", he said.[4]  Sharif sought to mobilise the entire Islamic world in support of Pakistan and criticised India for nuclear proliferation.[4]

text: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had been under intense pressure regarding the nuclear tests by President Bill Clinton and Opposition leader Benazir Bhutto at home.[35] Initially surprising the world, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif authorised nuclear testing program and the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) carried out nuclear testings under the codename Chagai-I on 28 May 1998 and Chagai-II on 30 May 1998. These six underground nuclear tests at the Chagai and Kharan test site were conducted fifteen days after India's last test. The total yield of the tests was reported to be 40 kt (see codename: Chagai-I).[36]

text: Pakistan's subsequent tests invited similar condemnation from the United States.[37] American President Bill Clinton was quoted as saying "Two wrongs don't make a right", criticising Pakistan's tests as reactionary to India's Pokhran-II.[35] The United States and Japan reacted by imposing economic sanctions on Pakistan. According to the Pakistan's science community, the Indian nuclear tests gave an opportunity to Pakistan to conduct nuclear tests after 14 years of conducting only cold tests (See: Kirana-I).[38]

text: Pakistan's leading nuclear physicist, Pervez Hoodbhoy, held India responsible for Pakistan's nuclear test experiments in Chagai.[39]

text: U.N. sanctions[edit]

text: The reactions from abroad started immediately after the tests were advertised. On 6 June, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 1172 condemning the test and that of Pakistan's.[40] China issued a vociferous condemnation calling upon the international community to exert pressure on India to sign the NPT and eliminate its nuclear arsenal. With India joining the group of countries possessing nuclear weapons, a new strategic dimension had emerged in Asia, particularly South Asia.[40]

text: Effects on Indian economy[edit]

text: Overall, the effect of international sanctions on Indian economy was minimal; the technological progress was marginal. Most nations did not call for embargoes against India as the exports and imports together constituted only 4.0% of its GDP, with United States trade accounting for only 10.0% of this total. Far more significant were the restrictions on lending imposed by the United States and its representatives on international finance bodies. Most of the sanctions were lifted within five years.

text: Legacy[edit]

text: The Indian government has officially declared the 11 May as National Technology Day in India to commemorate the first of the five nuclear tests that were carried out on 11 May 1998.[41]

text: It was officially signed by then-Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 1998 and the day is celebrated by giving awards to various individuals and industries in the field of science and technology.[41]

text: In popular culture[edit]

text: Parmanu: The Story of Pokhran is a 2018 Bollywood movie based on India's underground Pokhran-II nuclear test.