"UK government" and "Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom" redirect here. For the general topic of governance in the United Kingdom, see
Politics of the United Kingdom.
A logo of Her Majesty's Government
Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom is the central government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Under the British constitution, executive authority notionally lies with the monarch but is exercised by and on the advice of the Cabinet, a collective body of the Queen's most senior ministers. In UK parlance, "the Government" is usually a collective noun that refers to ministers of the Crown, who are all members of one or other of the houses of Parliament. Members of the Government are both individually and collectively accountable to Parliament for the advice tendered to Her Majesty and the actions carried out in her name.
The Government is led by the Prime Minister, who is appointed by the Queen as the Member or Lord of Parliament most likely to command a majority in the House of Commons. The Prime Minister is based at 10 Downing Street, which along with most government departments, is located in Westminster. In practice, the Prime Minister selects the other members of the government and their appointment is confirmed by the Queen. The government is fused with Parliament,[1] which means that in practice a government must seek re-election at least every five years.[2]
The current Prime Minister is Gordon Brown, leader of the Labour Party. He was appointed by Queen Elizabeth II on 27 June 2007.[3] He leads a government composed of 127 ministers, mostly Labour Party MPs.[4]
[edit] Devolved governments
Since 1998, certain areas of central government have been devolved to democratically-accountable governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. By contrast, there is no devolved government in England.
[edit] Local government
Elected local governments exist in all four component parts of the United Kingdom.
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[edit] References
[edit] External links
