Britain's long-serving finance minister has taken over as prime minister on after Tony Blair resigned.
Some facts about Gordon Brown:
* Brown, 56, whose father was a minister in the Church of Scotland and strongly shaped his views, had a sporting accident when he was a teenager and lost an eye. A prodigious intellect, he went to university at 16.
* After university, Brown worked briefly as a lecturer and a television journalist before entering parliament in 1983, the same year as Blair. The two of them shared an office.
* Westminster folklore has it that Brown and Blair agreed over dinner at a London restaurant in 1994 that Blair would have a clear run at the party leadership on the understanding that Brown would take over half way through a second term in government.
* Brown is the longest-serving chancellor of the exchequer (finance minister) in 200 years. His first act as minister was to hand independence to the Bank of England, putting it in charge of interest rates, a move lauded by financial markets.
* There have been clashes with Blair over public service reforms and over Blair's ambition to take Britain into the euro, which Brown effectively thwarted by setting out five economic criteria that Britain must meet before joining.
* Brown's first child with his wife Sarah died 10 days after her premature birth in 2001. The couple have since had two children, the second of whom has been diagnosed with cystic fibrosis.
Key policy areas facing Brown:
ECONOMY
Chancellor of the Exchequer since 1997, markets have little to fear from a Brown premiership as economic policy is likely to remain unchanged. He has pledged to keep the tightest lid on public spending growth in a decade and announced cuts in the headline corporation and income tax rates to come in next year.
IRAQ
Brown has always publicly backed the Iraq war and accepted responsibility for it as a cabinet decision. Nevertheless, he will be anxious to draw a line under the episode -- perhaps the biggest reason for the government's unpopularity -- and has pledged to reduce troop numbers as and when possible. He has said, however, that Britain will meet its international obligations under the United Nations in Iraq. One option would be to back US Democrat calls for a faster troop reduction in the expectation they will take over the White House in 18 months' time. Afghanistan remains a similar problem.
THE UNITED STATES
Blair has come under fire for his unstinting support of the Bush administration. Brown is likely to have a slightly cooler approach but disappoint those who feel Britain needs to be more anti-Bush. He has often said anti-Americanism is a mistake. Brown met Bush for the first time in Washington in April and an aide to the finance minister said it as a "good meeting".
EUROPE
Brown is widely perceived as cooler toward Europe than Blair. He kept Britain out of the European single currency. Nevertheless, Brown is aware that many key issues, such as tackling carbon emissions, require a European solution. He will have to face off calls for a referendum on a European Union Treaty signed by Blair last week as the opposition Conservatives say the accord amounts to an EU constitution.
HOUSING
Brown has said the government will build new council homes (government-owned property) as well as new housing stock to sell. Affordable housing for all is a Brown mantra. He wants to build "eco towns and villages" that respect the environment. He has said the housing minister will have a seat in cabinet.
SECURITY
Brown has publicly supported government plans to detain terrorism suspects for more than 28 days without charge that were defeated in parliament. He has also spoken of winning over "hearts and minds" to deflect the threat of home-grown attacks.
DEFENCE
Brown is committed to renewing Britain's Trident nuclear deterrent, which has angered some left-wingers in the country.
PARLIAMENT
Brown has said parliament should have a say on big decisions such as going to war. He has also said there should be greater consultation, with the executive being held to account not just by parliament but also by the country at large.
EDUCATION
Brown has pledged to make education a centrepiece of his premiership and promised more money so pupils in the state sector suffer no undue disadvantage compared to privately educated children. He has also floated the idea of more public-private partnerships in schools and skills training.
HEALTH
Brown has also pledged to boost the health service and needs to regain the initiative on this key voter concern from the opposition Conservatives. He has called for longer opening hours for family doctors and greater access to treatments.
ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY
As all main political parties vie to seize the green initiative, Brown has made clear he prefers incentives to taxes, which may be regressive. He believes tackling pollution has to be done at a global level since carbon emission ceilings are set at an EU level. He is also expected to back the building of new nuclear power plants though may be more cost conscious than Blair.
TRADE/AID
Brown wants to strengthen the Department for International Development, aligning aid, debt relief and trade policies. Brown is expected to dismantle the Department for Trade and Industry.
BUILDING PLANNING
Brown likely to ease some of Britain's cumbersome planning laws, building on Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee member Kate Barker's review, commissioned by the Treasury. This could enable easier building of new homes, shopping centres and nuclear power stations.
MEDIA
Brown could get away from the question of future funding for Channel 4 by selling it.
- REUTERS
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