Prime Minister of the United Kingdom office and should be addressed by the official title prefixed by "The Right Honourable" and not by a personal name. Although this form of address is employed on formal occasions, it is rarely used by the media. As "Prime Minister" is a position, not a title, the incumbent should be referred to as "the Prime Minister". The title "Prime Minister" (e.g. "Prime Minister James Smith") is technically incorrect but is sometimes used erroneously outside the United Kingdom, and has more recently become acceptable within it. Within the UK, the expression "Prime Minister Smith" is never used, although it, too, is
Premiership of Gordon Brown News microphone he was still wearing following a visit to Rochdale and were widely broadcast. At the election, Labour lost 91 seats in the House of Commons, but the Conservatives failed to achieve an overall majority, resulting in the first hung parliament since 1974. Under the constitution governing what happens in the event of a hung parliament, Brown remained temporarily as Prime Minister, while the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives entered into talks aimed at forming a coalition government. Talks between the Liberal Democrats and Labour also took place. On 10 May, Brown announced his intention to resign as leader of