Records of Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom The tallest Prime Minister is believed to be Lord Salisbury, who was around in height, although Downing Street's own website lists James Callaghan as the tallest. The longest personal name held by a British Prime Minister was that of Lord Derby whose three forenames and double-barreled surnameEdward George Geoffrey Smith-Stanleytotal 32 letters. The shortest baptismal names, each 10 letters long, were held by Lord Bute who was plain John Stuart, and Sir Robert Peel. John Major was baptised "John Roy Major" but his birth certificate simply read "John Major", and so his legal name has only nine letters. (He used
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom powerful than the American presidents, as the Prime Minister is part of the legislature, and unlike presidents, can directly initiate legislation. Thus, Dowding argues that adding to these powers, makes the Prime Minister less like presidents, and that what Britain is witnessing is not presidentialisation but, increase in powers overtime, can be best explained as "Prime Ministerialisation" of British politics. Regarding the thesis, Dowding writes: "The presidentialisation of the Prime Minister thesis should be expunged from political science vocabulary, to the extent that the forces identified by those who pursue the thesis exist, they do not make the British Prime