Government > Leaders Stats: compare key data on Tonga & United Kingdom

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STAT	Tonga	United Kingdom	HISTORY
Head of state	King George Tupou VI	Queen Elizabeth II
Head of state > Profile	<p>George Tupou VI succeeded to the throne on the death of his elder brother, the bachelor George Tupou V, in March 2012. </p> <p>The new King was Tonga&#039;s High Commissioner (ambassador) to Australia from 2008, having served as prime minister in 2000-2006. He quit as prime minister in the face of violent pro-democracy protests in February 2006, and was succeeded by Tonga&#039;s first non-royal and non-aristocratic head of government, Feleti Sevele.</p> <p>The late King George Tupou V ushered in parliamentary democracy in 2010, ending centuries of feudal dominance of government.</p>	<p>Elizabeth II became queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in 1952 upon the death of her father, George VI.</p> <p>She is the second longest serving head of state, after the Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who was crowned in 1946.</p> <p>She is also head of state of 16 independent countries including Canada and Australia.</p> <p>As a constitutional monarch, her role in the legislative process is largely ceremonial.</p>
Head of state > Summary	George Tupou VI became king following the death of his brother	Queen Elizabeth is head of state of 16 countries
Prime minister	Lord Tu&#039;ivakano	David Cameron
Prime minister > Profile	<p>Lord Tu&#039;ivakano became the country&#039;s first prime minister to be elected by parliament rather than appointed by the king in December 2010. </p> <p>Tu&#039;ivakano, a former speaker of Parliament, won 14 votes - two more than pro-democracy leader Akalisi Pohiva - in the ballot among the 26 members of the Tongan house of representatives. </p> <p>Tu&#039;ivakano, the minister for education and training in the former government, replaced Feleti Seveli. </p> <p>Under Tonga&#039;s new constitution, voters directly elected 17 seats in parliament, while nine were reserved for nobles. </p> <p>Previously, the tiny Pacific kingdom was run by a parliament dominated by a clique of nobles selected by the king, who also chose the prime minister and cabinet. </p> <p>The swing towards democracy followed riots in the capital Nuku&#039;alofa in 2006, which claimed eight lives and destroyed much of the business centre as people protested against the slow pace of political reform. </p>	<p>David Cameron became prime minister at the head of a coalition government on 11 May 2010, returning his centre-right Conservative Party to power after 13 years of rule by the centre-left Labour Party.</p> <p>Mr Cameron formed a partnership with the third party, the traditionally social liberal Liberal Democrats, after an inconclusive parliamentary election from which the Conservatives emerged with the largest number of seats, but without an absolute majority.</p> <p>It is the first formal coalition government in 70 years to govern the UK, where the electoral system usually guarantees a majority for the largest party.</p> <p>The partnership has proved fractious, with Mr Cameron at times seen as struggling to maintain discipline. Several constitutional reform projects - including plans for an elected upper house of parliament and changes to voting for the lower house - have fallen by the wayside as a result of deep differences between the two parties.</p> <p>Deep cuts</span> <p>On coming to power, the new PM was confronted by a daunting economic situation, with the UK only slowly emerging from a deep recession caused by the 2008 global financial collapse, and facing a rapidly mounting budget deficit.</p> <p>Mr Cameron promised that cutting the deficit would be his top priority. In October 2010, Mr Cameron&#039;s government announced a programme of deep cuts in government spending - the UK&#039;s largest in generations.</p> <p>In late 2013, improved growth estimates and employment figures suggested the economic gloom may be lifting, but concerns remained about the sustainability of the recovery, as well continuing pressure on household finances.</p> <p>All of this came against the background of the continuing crisis in the eurozone, and Mr Cameron has faced pressure from the right of his party to distance Britain further from any deeper European Union integration. </p> <p>The prime minister sought to ease this tension in 2013 by proposing a referendum on whether to leave the European Union after the next election, although this faces opposition from both the Liberal Democrats and Labour.</p> <p>Born the son of a wealthy stockbroker in 1966 in London, Mr Cameron was educated at Eton College - Britain&#039;s top private school - and Oxford University. Aged 43 on coming to power, he was the youngest prime minister since 1812.</p>
Prime minister > Summary	Lord Tu&#039;ivakano is a former speaker of Parliament	David Cameron heads a coalition government

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