Trade Openness
The United Kingdom’s performance in specific areas of the Trade Openness category shows the greatest room for improvement in terms of the complexity of tariffs, where it has a progress score (ranging from a poor mark of 0 to a top mark of one 100) of 31.6, resulting in a rank of 113th out of 141 countries.
The United Kingdom receives an overall progress score in this category of 65 out of a possible 100. That in turn translates into a rank of 25th out of the 141 countries included in the category (in the overall Competitiveness Index - taking into account all categories - the United Kingdom ranks 9th out of 141 countries).
The Trade Openness category of the Global Competitiveness Index assesses each country’s efforts to facilitate international trade, primarily in terms of the application of tariffs and border controls.
Other indicators reflect a better performance: the prevalence of non-tariff-related barriers to importing goods, where it has a progress score of 66.2 that results in a rank of 27th out of 141 countries; the efficiency of clearing customs and other border control agencies where it has a progress score of 69.3 that results in a rank of 11th out of 137 countries; and the severity of tariff rates where it has a progress score of 92.5 that results in a rank of 7th out of 141 countries.
Technology Adoption
The United Kingdom’s performance in specific areas of the Technology Adoption category shows the greatest room for improvement in terms of fibre internet subscriptions, where it has a progress score (ranging from a poor mark of 0 to a top mark of one 100) of 1.3, resulting in a rank of 79th out of 125 countries.
Other indicators reflect a better performance: mobile-broadband subscriptions, where it has a progress score of 91.6 that results in a rank of 34th out of 141 countries; the percentage of the population using the internet where it has a progress score of 94.9 that results in a rank of 10th out of 141 countries; and mobile-cellular telephone subscriptions where it has a progress score of 98 that results in a rank of 70th out of 141 countries.
The ICT Adoption category of the Global Competitiveness Index describes a country’s embrace of information and communications technologies including the internet and mobile devices. The United Kingdom receives an overall progress score in this category of 73 out of a possible 100. That in turn translates into a rank of 31st out of the 141 countries included in the category (in the overall Competitiveness Index - taking into account all categories - the United Kingdom ranks 9th out of 141 countries).
UNITED KINGDOM
The UK played an important role on the global stage in developing the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs. It has claimed that it “will be at the forefront of delivering them,” but this is far from what we in UK civil society see in reality. In recent years, progress towards implementing the 2030 Agenda’s ambitious and transformative goals – both in the UK and around the world – has been disappointing.
We are almost halfway to 2030. Although the pandemic has set back progress on the SDGs, it has also shown us just how interconnected the Goals are. World leaders need to be bold, and many are now asking how to deliver transformative change as we begin to rebuild from the pandemic. Now is the time for the UK to step up and start delivering.
While some individual rankings may appear unusually high or low, that can merely be the result of a large number of peers having identical progress scores in a particular category - which may group them into a single ranking at one end of the spectrum.
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Future Orientation of Government
The Future Orientation of Government category of the Global Competitiveness Index assesses a country’s ability to adapt to digital business models and respond effectively to technological, social, and demographic change.
The United Kingdom’s performance in specific areas of the Future Orientation of Government category shows the greatest room for improvement in terms of the government's long-term vision, where it has a progress score (ranging from a poor mark of 0 to a top mark of one 100) of 51.4, resulting in a rank of 61st out of 140 countries.
Other indicators reflect a better performance: enforcing greater energy efficiency through regulation, where it has a progress score of 84.2 that results in a rank of 8th out of 113 countries; encouraging the use of renewable energy through regulation where it has a progress score of 90.6 that results in a rank of 2nd out of 113 countries; and enforcing treaties related to protecting the environment where it has a progress score of 96.6 that results in a rank of 7th out of 139 countries.
The United Kingdom receives an overall progress score in this category of 75 out of a possible 100. That in turn translates into a rank of 7th out of the 141 countries included in the category (in the overall Competitiveness Index - taking into account all categories - the United Kingdom ranks 9th out of 141 countries).
Corporate Governance
The United Kingdom receives an overall progress score in this category of 74 out of a possible 100. That in turn translates into a rank of 13th out of the 141 countries included in the category (in the overall Competitiveness Index - taking into account all categories - the United Kingdom ranks 9th out of 141 countries).
The United Kingdom’s performance in specific areas of the Corporate Governance category shows the greatest room for improvement in terms of shareholder governance, where it has a progress score (ranging from a poor mark of 0 to a top mark of one 100) of 67, resulting in a rank of 37th out of 141 countries; and in terms of the strength of auditing and reporting standards where it has a progress score of 73.4 that results in a rank of 31st out of 141 countries.
The Corporate Governance category of the Global Competitiveness Index assesses related aspects in each country including auditing and accounting standards, conflict of interest regulation, and shareholder governance.
One indicator reflects a better performance: conflict of interest regulation, where it has a progress score of 83 that results in a rank of 8th out of 141 countries.
Public Sector Performance
The Public Sector Performance category of the Global Competitiveness Index describes a government’s success in crafting rules that work for everyone, providing information to the public, planning for the future, and maintaining a healthy legal framework.
The United Kingdom’s performance in specific areas of the Public Sector Performance category shows the greatest room for improvement in terms of the burden of government regulation, where it has a progress score (ranging from a poor mark of 0 to a top mark of one 100) of 55.6, resulting in a rank of 21st out of 141 countries; and in terms of the efficiency of the legal framework in settling disputes where it has a progress score of 68.1 that results in a rank of 19th out of 141 countries. One indicator reflects a better performance: the government's use of the internet to provide information to the public (referred to as "e-participation" in the Index), where it has a progress score of 98.3 that results in a rank of 5th out of 139 countries.
The United Kingdom receives an overall progress score in this category of 74 out of a possible 100. That in turn translates into a rank of 10th out of the 141 countries included in the category (in the overall Competitiveness Index - taking into account all categories - the United Kingdom ranks 9th out of 141 countries).
Security
The Security category of the Global Competitiveness Index describes a country’s situation relative to challenges like organized crime, homicides, terrorist attacks, and the reliability of police services.
Other indicators reflect a better performance: the incidence of terrorism, where it has a progress score of 88.3 that results in a rank of 125th out of 141 countries; and homicide rate where it has a progress score of 97.6 that results in a rank of 40th out of 141 countries.
The United Kingdom’s performance in specific areas of the Security category shows the greatest room for improvement in terms of organized crime, where it has a progress score (ranging from a poor mark of 0 to a top mark of one 100) of 61.7, resulting in a rank of 70th out of 141 countries; and in terms of the reliability of police services where it has a progress score of 69.8 that results in a rank of 37th out of 141 countries.
The United Kingdom receives an overall progress score in this category of 79 out of a possible 100. That in turn translates into a rank of 54th out of the 141 countries included in the category (in the overall Competitiveness Index - taking into account all categories - the United Kingdom ranks 9th out of 141 countries).