2008 in the United Kingdom

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2008 in the United Kingdom
Other years
2006 \| 2007 \| 2008 \| 2009 \| 2010
Constituent countries
England \| Northern Ireland \| Scotland \| Wales
Sport, Television and music
2008 British Grand Prix
2008 English cricket season
Football: England \| Scotland \| Wales
2008 in British television
2008 in British music
UK in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008

Events from the year 2008 in the United Kingdom.

1 Incumbents
2 Events
3 Publications
4 Deaths
5 References

[edit] Incumbents

Monarch - HM Queen Elizabeth II
Prime Minister - Gordon Brown, Labour Party

[edit] Events

[edit] January

January 4 - An unforecasted blizzard creates havoc across eastern Northern Ireland, with falls of 8 inches in one hour.
12 January - The city of Liverpool officially becomes European Capital of Culture for 2008, a title it will share with Stavanger, Norway.
24 January - Peter Hain resigns as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions over irregular donations.^[1]
31 January - Conservative Party MP Derek Conway suspended from the House of Commons for 10 days over payments made to his son from his parliamentary allowances.^[2]

[edit] February

6 February - The England National Football team defeat Switzerland 2–1 in Fabio Capello's first game as manager at Wembley Stadium in London.
17 February - The Government announced that the Northern Rock bank would be temporarily taken into public ownership.
21 February - A jury at Ipswich Crown Court finds Steve Wright, 49, guilty of murdering five prostitutes in a spree during late 2006.^[3]
22 February
- Steve Wright is sentenced to life imprisonment with a recommendation that he should never be released.^[4]
- Mark Dixie, 37, is found guilty of the September 2005 murder of Surrey model Sally Anne Bowman (18). He is sentenced to life imprisonment at the Old Bailey, where the trial judge recommends that he serves at least 34 years before parole can be considered.^[5]
26 February - Levi Bellfield, 38, is found guilty of murdering two women in London in sexually-motivated attacks; the first in 2001, the second in 2004. He receives a life sentence with a recommendation that he should never be released.
27 February - An earthquake with an epicentre in Lincolnshire is felt across most of Britain, with several buildings suffering substantial damage.

[edit] March

12 March - The British Budget is unveiled by Alistair Darling as his first in the position of Chancellor of the Exchequer.

[edit] April

2 April - A cross human-cow embryo survives a third straight day after being fertilized at Newcastle University, England. A director for embryonic stem cell laboratories at the Australian Stem Cell Centre said that the "99 per cent human" embryo could improve research within the field of human diseases. The Catholic Church in England however said that the creation was "monstrous" and says that the later destruction of it is unethical. ^[6]
April 6 - The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 came into force.^[7]