prime minister or premier, chief member of the cabinet cabinet, group of advisers to the head of the state who themselves are usually the heads of the administrative government departments. The nature of the cabinet differs widely in various countries.
..... Click the link for more information. in a parliamentary system of government. The prime minister is head of the government, in contrast with the head of state, who may be a constitutional monarch, as in Great Britain, or an elected official, as in the case of the president of India. Procedures governing the selection of the prime minister vary from country to country, but under the system that has evolved in Great Britain (which has provided the model for Commonwealth countries) he is usually the leader of the majority party in Parliament and must by convention be a member of the lower house. The prime minister appoints the other cabinet ministers, makes and coordinates the policy of the government, controls the administration, and dispenses patronage. In major policy areas he must have the support of the legislature; otherwise he and his cabinet are customarily expected either to resign or to dissolve the legislature and call new elections. An individual cabinet minister who is unable to support the prime minister is also expected to resign. In France (under the Fifth Republic) and in a few other countries with parliamentary governments, the powers of the prime minister are considerably less than those described above; most of the executive authority is exercised by the president, while the prime minister plays a comparatively minor role. In the United States the President combines the functions of head of government and head of state.

Bibliography

See B. Carter, The Office of Prime Minister (1956); W. I. Jennings, Cabinet Government (3d ed. 1959); F. W. G. Benemy, The Elected Monarch (1965); S. E. Finer, Comparative Government (1971).

prime minister

or premier

Head of government in countries with a parliamentary (see parliamentary democracy) or semipresidential system of government. The prime minister is the leader of the political party or coalition with a governing majority and is formally appointed by the head of state. Although the origin of the title lies in 17th-century France, where the cardinal de Richelieu was acknowledged in 1624 as principal or premier ministre, the office essentially developed in Britain in the 18th century. Robert Walpole (1721–42) is generally considered the first British prime minister; the powers of the office were consolidated by William Pitt the Younger. The British prime ministry has served as a model for the heads of government in many Commonwealth countries, Europe, and Japan. The prime minister has appointive powers and is responsible for the government's legislative program, budget, and other policies. His term of office lasts until the next scheduled election or until he loses legislative support. In France and Russia, which have semipresidential systems with both a president and a prime minister, the president wields greater power but the prime minister controls the domestic legislative agenda. See also chancellor.