Prime Minister of the United Kingdom century as a convention of the constitution, the position of Leader of the Opposition was given statutory recognition in 1937 by the Ministers of the Crown Act. British Prime Ministers have never been elected directly by the public. A Prime Minister need not be a party leader; David Lloyd George was not a party leader during his service as prime Minister during World War I, and neither was Ramsay MacDonald from 1931 to 1935. Prime Ministers have taken office because they were members of either the Commons or Lords, and either inherited a majority in the Commons or won more
Premiership of Gordon Brown there had been none. The House of Lords defeated the bill, which Lords said was "fatally flawed, ill thought through and unnecessary", stating that "it seeks to further erode ... fundamental legal and civil rights". Gordon Brown caused controversy during September and early October 2007 by letting speculation that he would call a snap general election continue. The Labour Party launched an advertising campaign, "Not Flash, Just Gordon", which was seen largely as pre-election promotion of Brown as Prime Minister. Following the negative reaction to his visit to British troops in Iraq during the 2007 Conservative Party Conference, an unrehearsed