Gordon Brown took over as British prime minister Wednesday, ending his long years of waiting for the top job and hopefully opening a new era for the country.

In a short speech at the gate of his new home No.10 Downing Street after his premiership was confirmed by Queen Elizabeth II, Brown, with rare smile, said he will form a new government with new priorities.

"I have accepted the invitation of the Majesty the Queen to form a government. This will be a new government with new priorities," Brown said.

"I have been privileged to be granted the great opportunity to serve my country," he said, "and in all times, I will be strong in purpose, steadfast in will, resolute in action, in the service of what matters to the British people, meeting the concerns and aspirations of our whole country."

The immediate tricky job for Brown as prime minister was to choose his cabinet members. Intensive discussions were underway later Wednesday, with the result likely to come out Thursday morning.

A dramatic reshuffle was predicted as Brown had said that he would like to draw on talents not confined to his Labor Party.

Brown reiterated his intention to build a government across party lines.

"I will reach out beyond the narrow party interest," he said, "I will build a government that uses all the talents, I will invite men and women of good will to contribute their energies in the new spirit of public service to make our nation what it can be."

The Sky News, citing sources, reported that Margaret Beckett would not stay Foreign Secretary, and Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt also resigned from the government for "personal reasons".

The House of Commons leader Jack Straw was said to be keen to return to the Foreign Office, a post he held from 2001 until Beckett took over in 2006.

Earlier Wednesday, Brown was summoned by Queen Elizabeth II to a private audience at her official residence, Buckingham Palace, where he was formally confirmed as the new leader shortly after Tony Blair tendered his resignation.

In a largely ceremonial procedure, Brown sought permission from the queen to form a new government as the leader of the ruling Labor Party.

Brown, serving for ten years as the Chancellor of the Exchequer in charge of treasury for Blair, was endorsed as the new leader of the Labor Party Sunday after Blair announced in May that he would step down today.

The new prime minister is facing a country still divided by the Iraq war and seeking response to the recent call for a referendum on the new European Union treaty, which was agreed during a summit last week to replace the dead EU constitution treaty.

Furthermore, there is rising speculation that Brown would soon occupy himself with an early general election.

In his first speech as the ruling party leader Sunday, Brown appointed current Transport Secretary Douglas Alexander as coordinator for the party's election campaign, sparking rumors that he may go to the country as early as next year.

British voters are scheduled to go to national polls around May 2010.

As Brown finally got the keys to No. 10 Downing Street, the Labor Party and the opposition Conservative Party were virtually neck-and-neck in the latest polls.

Results released by the Sky News on Wednesday showed that Brown's party won the backing of 36 percent of 2,080 people polled, trailing the Conservatives by a single point.

However, Brown himself rated ahead of the Tories leader David Cameron on trust, leadership, the National Health Service, the economy and education, only lower on foreign policy and charisma.

Facing the challenge of how to lead his party to a fourth consecutive victory, Brown gained one more vote in Parliament before his first day as the prime minister.

On Tuesday, Quentin Davies, a 20-year parliamentary member from the opposition Conservative Party, defected to Labor.

British media later revealed that Brown was behind Davies' shock defection, or at least the new prime minister knew of the decision beforehand.

In his first speech as prime minister, Brown said he will continue to listen and learn from the British people to deliver changes to the country, a similar message to what he pledged when he was elected to lead the ruling Labor Party Sunday.

"I heard the need for change," he said, adding that his government will seek changes for better education and affordable housing, change to build people's trust in the government and change to protect and extend British way of life.

"If we can fulfill the potential and realize the talents of all our people, then I am absolutely sure that Britain can be the great global success story of the century," Brown said.

Citing his school motto "I will try my utmost" to show his resolution, Brown said, "This is my promise to all the people of Britain and now let the work of change begin."

V. Ahuja, a retired man who used to work as an accountant in the City of London, the global financial powerhouse, was cautious about Brown's commitments, though he thought the leadership change is good for the country.

"He (Brown) did make a lot of promises, but I want to see his action," he said.

Arnold Richards, a family hotel runner in London, was rather confident of Brown.

"I think he will have more chance of delivery," Richards said.

(Xinhua News Agency June 29, 2007)