The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister advises the sovereign on the exercise of much of the royal prerogative, chairs the Cabinet, and selects its ministers. Modern prime ministers hold office by virtue of their ability to command the confidence of the House of Commons, so they are invariably members of Parliament.
The office of prime minister is not established by any statute or constitutional document, but exists only by long-established convention, whereby the monarch appoints as prime minister the person most likely to command the confidence of the House of Commons. In practice, this is the leader of the political party that holds the largest number of seats in the Commons. The prime minister is ex officio also First Lord of the Treasury (an office often associated with the premiership between 1721 and 1895, after 1902 always united to it, and, after 1905, an official title of the position), Minister for the Civil Service, the minister responsible for national security, and Minister for the Union. The prime minister's official residence and office is 10 Downing Street in London.