# Canonical recap data for Theresa May Becomes UK Prime Minister (2016)
# Source: https://recap.at/2016/may-prime-minister
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: may-prime-minister
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/2016/may-prime-minister"
title: Theresa May Becomes UK Prime Minister
aliases:
- May becomes PM
- Theresa May appointed Prime Minister
- 13 July 2016
subtitle: May assumed office in the wake of the Brexit referendum, tasked with negotiating Britain's exit from the European Union.
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 2016-01-01
datePrecision: year
year: 2016
decade: 2010
country:
name: United Kingdom
slug: united-kingdom
summaryShort: 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 t
summaryLong: 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.
lede: Theresa May became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on July 13, 2016, following David Cameron's resignation after the Brexit referendum. She was the second woman to hold the office, inheriting a fractured Conservative Party and a country divided over its future in the European Union.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6c/Coat_of_arms_of_the_United_Kingdom_%282024%2C_lesser_arms%29.svg/1280px-Coat_of_arms_of_the_United_Kingdom_%282024%2C_lesser_arms%29.svg.png"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "Prime Minister of the United Kingdom"
importance: 70
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts:
- label: Date of appointment
  value: July 13, 2016
- label: Order in British history
  value: 76th Prime Minister
- label: Gender milestone
  value: Second woman to hold office
- label: Predecessor
  value: David Cameron
- label: Party
  value: Conservative Party
- label: Days in office
  value: 1,036 (until July 24, 2019)
- label: Cabinet position before PM
  value: Home Secretary
- label: Years as Home Secretary
  value: 6 (2010-2016)
timeline:
- date: 2016-06-23
  title: Brexit referendum
  description: UK votes 52% to 48% to leave the European Union; David Cameron announces he will step down.
- date: 2016-07-11
  title: Conservative leadership race narrows
  description: Theresa May emerges as frontrunner after rival Andrea Leadsom withdraws from the contest.
- date: 2016-07-13
  title: May appointed Prime Minister
  description: Theresa May becomes Prime Minister after meeting Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace. She forms her first Cabinet.
- date: 2016-07-14
  title: First statements as PM
  description: May delivers her first speech outside 10 Downing Street, pledging to make Britain work for ordinary working people.
- date: 2016-10-02
  title: Conservative Party Conference speech
  description: May delivers keynote address signaling hard Brexit stance and 'Great Repeal Bill' to end EU law supremacy.
- date: 2017-03-29
  title: Article 50 triggered
  description: May formally initiates Brexit negotiations with the European Union, setting a two-year departure clock.
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_Minister_of_the_United_Kingdom"
  title: Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
impactStatement: May's ascension marked a pivot point for British politics. She inherited the immediate task of managing Brexit negotiations while holding together a party with irreconcilable positions on Europe, a challenge that would ultimately consume her premiership and reshape UK governance for years to come.
categories:
- election
metaDescription: Theresa May becomes UK Prime Minister after Cameron's Brexit resignation, July 13, 2016.
wikidataQid: Q14211
taxonomy:
domain: political
eventTypes:
- regime_change
canonicalClasses:
- governance
- transformation
impactRadius: national
velocity: sudden
predictability: forecastable
intentionality: planned
domainCoupling: single_domain
lifecycleClass: transition
mediaCoverage:
- publisher: The Guardian
  publisherSlug: the-guardian
  headline: Theresa May becomes Prime Minister after David Cameron's resignation
  publishedAt: 2016-07-13
  url: "https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/jul/13/theresa-may-confirmed-as-new-prime-minister"
  excerpt: Theresa May was confirmed as Britain's second female prime minister on Wednesday after David Cameron formally resigned following the Brexit referendum. The Home Secretary, who campaigned to remain in the EU, will take office immediately and face the task of negotiating the country's departure from the European Union.
  significance: 90
  type: newspaper
  region: United Kingdom
- publisher: The Telegraph
  publisherSlug: the-telegraph
  headline: Theresa May is new Prime Minister - 'Brexit means Brexit'
  publishedAt: 2016-07-13
  url: "https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/07/13/theresa-may-becomes-prime-minister/"
  excerpt: Theresa May has become Prime Minister and immediately declared that 'Brexit means Brexit', signalling a hard line on EU negotiations. The Home Secretary takes over from David Cameron with a mandate to unite the fractured Conservative Party and country.
  significance: 89
  type: newspaper
  region: United Kingdom
- publisher: BBC News
  publisherSlug: bbc-news
  headline: Theresa May appointed UK Prime Minister after Cameron steps down
  publishedAt: 2016-07-13
  url: bbc.co.uk/news
  excerpt: Theresa May has been appointed Prime Minister following David Cameron's resignation in the wake of the EU referendum result. May, the longest-serving Home Secretary in modern times, replaces Cameron with immediate effect.
  significance: 90
  type: tv
  region: United Kingdom
- publisher: The New York Times
  publisherSlug: the-new-york-times
  headline: Theresa May Becomes Prime Minister of Britain, Vowing to Lead Brexit Negotiations
  publishedAt: 2016-07-13
  url: "https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/14/world/europe/theresa-may-becomes-prime-minister-of-britain.html"
  excerpt: Theresa May, the Home Secretary, was appointed Prime Minister of Britain on Wednesday, taking over from David Cameron after the country's vote to leave the European Union. She assumes office at a moment of deep uncertainty about Britain's future relationships with Europe and the world.
  significance: 85
  type: newspaper
  region: United States
- publisher: Der Spiegel
  publisherSlug: der-spiegel
  headline: Theresa May - Britanniens neue Premierministerin
  publishedAt: 2016-07-13
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - set this literal string when no live archive URL is recallable
  excerpt: "DE: 'Theresa May - Britanniens neue Premierministerin' / EN: 'Theresa May - Britain's New Prime Minister'. May succeeds David Cameron as Britain navigates the aftermath of the Brexit referendum, inheriting the challenge of negotiating the nation's departure from the EU."
  significance: 78
  type: magazine
  region: Germany
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20160630004843/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_Minister_of_the_United_Kingdom"
  capturedAt: 2016-06-30
  label: Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_Minister_of_the_United_Kingdom"
gallery:
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6c/Coat_of_arms_of_the_United_Kingdom_%282024%2C_lesser_arms%29.svg/1280px-Coat_of_arms_of_the_United_Kingdom_%282024%2C_lesser_arms%29.svg.png"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6c/Coat_of_arms_of_the_United_Kingdom_%282024%2C_lesser_arms%29.svg/800px-Coat_of_arms_of_the_United_Kingdom_%282024%2C_lesser_arms%29.svg.png"
  caption: Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
  credit: Wikipedia · "Prime Minister of the United Kingdom"
  width: 330
  height: 288
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9d/Trump_meets_with_Theresa_May_in_Chequers.jpg/1280px-Trump_meets_with_Theresa_May_in_Chequers.jpg"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9d/Trump_meets_with_Theresa_May_in_Chequers.jpg/800px-Trump_meets_with_Theresa_May_in_Chequers.jpg"
  caption: Trump meets with Theresa May in Chequers
  credit: Office of U.S. Ambassador to U.K.
  width: 1600
  height: 1200
comparisonThenNow:
- metric: UK unemployment rate
  thenValue: 4.9%
  thenYear: 2016
  nowValue: 3.7%
  nowYear: 2024
  note: July 2016 vs. September 2024
- metric: FTSE 100 index
  thenValue: 6,338
  thenYear: 2016
  nowValue: 8,157
  nowYear: 2024
  note: 13 July 2016 (May's first day) vs. January 2024
- metric: Sterling to US Dollar exchange rate
  thenValue: "1.34"
  thenYear: 2016
  nowValue: "1.27"
  nowYear: 2024
  note: July 2016 vs. December 2024
- metric: UK government debt as % of GDP
  thenValue: 87.5%
  thenYear: 2016
  nowValue: 97.8%
  nowYear: 2023
  note: Post-referendum; pre-pandemic vs. latest available
- metric: Number of Conservative MPs
  thenValue: "330"
  thenYear: 2016
  nowValue: "121"
  nowYear: 2024
  note: After May took office vs. December 2024
consequences:
- title: Hard Brexit negotiation begins
  year: 2017
  description: May triggered Article 50 on 29 March 2017, formally beginning the UK's exit from the EU. This set a two-year countdown for leaving and launched years of fractious negotiations with Brussels over trade terms, the Irish border, and citizens' rights.
- title: Grenfell Tower fire and public inquiry
  year: 2017
  description: The 14 June 2017 Grenfell Tower fire killed 72 people in west London, exposing systemic failures in building safety oversight and regulation. May's government faced sustained criticism over its response and the delay in establishing a public inquiry.
- title: General election called, Conservative majority lost
  year: 2017
  description: May called a snap election on 18 April 2017, expecting to strengthen her hand in Brexit talks. The 8 June election backfired spectacularly, leaving her party with 318 seats and forced into a confidence-and-supply agreement with the 10 DUP MPs to govern.
- title: Chequers Plan published
  year: 2018
  description: On 6 July 2018, May unveiled her proposed post-Brexit trade arrangement (later called the Chequers Plan) at her country residence. The plan triggered resignations from David Davis and Boris Johnson, fracturing her cabinet and hardening opposition from both Remainers and Leavers.
- title: May announces resignation
  year: 2019
  description: On 24 May 2019, May announced she would step down as Prime Minister by 7 June. Her three failed attempts to pass her Brexit withdrawal agreement through Parliament had made her position untenable. Boris Johnson succeeded her in July 2019.
culturalContext:
topMusic:
- title: Blinding Lights
  artist: The Weeknd
  year: 2019
  note: Culturally dominant during 2016 was not possible; The Weeknd's earlier work like 'Can't Feel My Face' (2015) was contemporary
- title: One Dance
  artist: Drake featuring Wizkid and Kyla
  year: 2016
- title: Closer
  artist: The Chainsmokers featuring Halsey
  year: 2016
topFilms:
- title: Finding Dory
  year: 2016
- title: The Jungle Book
  year: 2016
- title: Doctor Strange
  year: 2016
topTVShows:
- title: Game of Thrones
  note: Season 6 aired in 2016
- title: The Crown
  year: 2016
  note: Netflix series debuted in November 2016
- title: Stranger Things
  year: 2016
  note: Netflix series premiered in July 2016
zeitgeistNote: 2016 was shaped by Brexit's shock result (June), Donald Trump's US election victory (November), and cultural dominance of superhero franchises and prestige television. UK culture was fractured between Leave and Remain camps, with political uncertainty defining the national mood.
relatedQueries:
- Theresa May Prime Minister 2016
- UK Brexit negotiations Theresa May
- Theresa May resignation 2019
- Grenfell Tower fire 2017 Theresa May response
- UK snap election 2017 Theresa May
- Boris Johnson succeeds Theresa May 2019
- Chequers Plan Brexit Theresa May
- Conservative Party leadership election 2016
- David Cameron resignation referendum 2016
- DUP confidence and supply Theresa May
