Brown resigns, Cameron takes over as British PM
LONDON (Reuters) - Conservative leader David Cameron took over as British prime minister on Tuesday and said he wanted to form a full coalition with the smaller Liberal Democrat Party.
Gordon Brown had resigned as prime minister earlier on Tuesday, ending 13 years of rule by his center-left Labour Party.
The center-right Conservatives won most seats in a parliamentary election last week but fell short of a majority. Labour came second and the Liberal Democrats a distant third.
Giving his first speech as prime minister, Cameron, 43, said he aimed to form what would be Britain's first coalition government since 1945.
"I believe that is the right way to provide this country with the strong, the stable, the good and decent government we need so badly," Cameron said, his pregnant wife Samantha standing nearby.
Britain's sterling currency rose against the dollar and the euro as Cameron spoke. Markets had been impatient to see an end to the uncertainty thrown up by last Thursday's inconclusive election.
Both the Conservatives and Labour had tried to win Lib Dem support to form the next government during five days of intense negotiations, but it became clear on Tuesday afternoon that Labour had lost and Brown would have to resign.
"I wish the next prime minister well as he makes the important choices for the future," an emotional Brown, 59, said earlier in front of the prime minister's residence at 10 Downing Street, flanked by his wife Sarah.
First among those choices will be how to reduce Britain's record budget deficit, whose size has raised fears that the country could lose its triple-A credit rating.
MARKET RALLY
Financial markets favored a Conservative-led government because they believe it would move faster and harder to cut the deficit.
Brown, his wife and their two children briefly posed for photographers after his farewell remarks, before leaving Downing Street. Brown then went to Buckingham Palace where Queen Elizabeth accepted his resignation.
Shortly afterwards, it was Cameron's turn to visit the queen, who formally asked him to form a government in her name. He went straight from the palace to Downing Street to deliver his speech.
Details of what the Conservatives and Lib Dems had agreed have not yet been made public. Both negotiating teams were due to report back to their legislators and party colleagues later in the evening.
The two parties will have to endorse any deal agreed by the negotiating teams.
The Lib Dems had turned to the Conservatives as potential coalition partners first, on the basis that they had won most votes and most seats in last Thursday's election.
Clegg had made clear during the election campaign that he did not wish to prop up the unpopular Brown.
But Brown said on Monday he would step aside in the coming months -- a move designed to tempt the Lib Dems to stop talking to the Conservatives and form an alliance with Labour.
(Additional reporting by Michael Holden, Peter Griffiths, Mohammed Abbas, Adrian Croft, Keith Weir and Tim Castle; writing by Estelle Shirbon; editing by Tim Pearce)
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