Editing Politics of the United Kingdom (section)

====The Prime Minister and the Cabinet====
{{Main|Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Cabinet of the United Kingdom}}
[[File:Prime Minister Keir Starmer hosts first Cabinet (53838994618).jpg|thumb|left|The [[Starmer ministry]], incumbent cabinet of the United Kingdom]] 
The Prime Minister, currently Sir Keir Starmer,<!-- Do not change this until a new PM is actually appointed by the King --> is the most senior minister in the Cabinet. Their tenure begins when they are appointed by the monarch. The Prime Minister is responsible for chairing Cabinet meetings, selecting Cabinet ministers (and all other positions in His Majesty's government), and formulating government policy. The Prime Minister being the ''de facto'' leader of the UK, exercises executive functions that are nominally vested in the sovereign (by way of the Royal Prerogatives). Historically, the British monarch was the sole source of executive powers in the government. However, following the lead of the Hanoverian monarchs, an arrangement of a "Prime Minister" chairing and leading the Cabinet began to emerge. Over time, this arrangement became the effective executive branch of government, as it assumed the day-to-day functioning of the British government away from the sovereign.

Theoretically, the Prime Minister is ''[[primus inter pares]]'' (i.e., Latin for "first among equals") among their Cabinet colleagues. While the Prime Minister is the senior Cabinet Minister, they are theoretically bound to make executive decisions in a collective fashion with the other Cabinet ministers. The Cabinet, along with the PM, consists of Secretaries of State from the various government departments, the [[Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain]], the [[Lord Privy Seal]], the [[Lord President of the Council]], the [[President of the Board of Trade]], the [[Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster]] and [[Minister without portfolio (United Kingdom)|Ministers without portfolio]]. Cabinet meetings are typically held weekly, while Parliament is in session.