Her Majesty's Government is the government of the United Kingdom. Under the Constitution of the United Kingdom, executive authority notionally lies with the monarch but is exercised in practice by her minister. Her Majesty's Government is the collective name for these ministers, and it is effectively an executive authority for the UK.

The government is led by the Prime Minister, who is appointed by the monarch 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 Prime Minister and Cabinet (consisting of all the most senior government ministers) are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the monarch and to Parliament. The government is fused with Parliament, which means that in practice a government must seek re-election at least every five years.

The current Prime Minister is Gordon Brown, leader of the Labour Party. He was appointed by Queen Elizabeth II on 27 June 2007. He leads a government composed of 127 ministers, mostly Labour Party MPs.

See also

• Politics of the United Kingdom
• Cabinet of the United Kingdom
• Her Majesty's Government frontbench
• Departments of the United Kingdom Government
• Directgov
• Her Majesty's Government Communication Centre
• Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council
• Her Majesty's Most Loyal Opposition
• State Opening of Parliament
• Northern Ireland Executive
• Scottish Government
• Welsh Assembly Government
• List of British governments

References

External links

• Official website of 10 Downing Street
• Directgov, the UK government public services website
  • DirectGov - Guide To Government
• Her Majesty's Government, a directory compiled by the House of Commons Information Office