It is represented by 72 members in the British House of Commons and by 16 Scottish peers in the House of Lords. Scottish national affairs are administered by a British cabinet ministry, headed by the secretary of state for Scotland. Local government issues are regulated by the Scottish Development Department. Economy Primarily an industrial and commercial nation, Scotland is an important part of the economy of the United Kingdom. Chief exports are petroleum, natural gas and manufactured goods.
Chief imports are food and iron.
More than three-fourths of the land is used for agriculture, both farming and livestock raising, but the economy is also driven by profitable manufacturing, mining, forestry, and fishing industries. History Scotland was initially known as Caledonia after the Roman invasion of Britain in the first century AD . The people strongly resisted foreign rule for several centuries, and in 409 the Romans withdrew from Britain. Power struggles and territorial disputes began immediately, and for several centuries neighboring groups vied for control over the area. At the beginning of the 6th century, the Scots, Celtic invaders from northern Ireland, established the kingdom known as Dalriada.