Nope, the police can start questioning right away. You can decline to answer without a lawyer, which isn't an admission of guilt and cannot be used as evidence of guilt, then the solicitor can council you on what you can and can't say. However, if during the questioning even with a lawyer present you omit something and use it in court, the prosecution is allowed to say "Well, this is a new piece of evidence" and use it against you however they can, or ask for it to be disallowed.

I think. It's been a while since I looked at the strict policy and regular interpretations. Police don't have to wait for a solicitor though, that's up to you and you have to ask for one straight off. If you're in the UK and you are arrested, be very polite with them, ask for a solicitor and wait, even if you know you're innocent. Actually, especially if you know you're innocent.

You know the UK doesn't have a constitution in the same sense as the USA? During the recent undeclared civil war in the UK (Northern Ireland), there were many suspensions of civil rights.

Sure they can, you can even question people without a lawyer present in the states. There's a woman in jail on death row - because a cop that's a known perjurer claimed that she'd broken down and confessed to murdering her kid to him

http://www.popehat.com/2013/03/14/the-presumption-of-truth/

Good luck getting legal aid for a criminal defense in the UK, is all I can say ...