London - Gordon Brown Wednesday became Britain's new prime minister, promising to head a government of "new priorities" that would bring fundamental change and "opportunities for all."Brown, 56, succeeds Tony Blair, who resigned Wednesday after 10 years as British prime minister.
Brown took over his new job after the formal act of being handed the seals of office by Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace.
Flanked by his wife, Sarah, and his voice choking with emotion, Brown said he would lead a government of change that would make Britain "one of the great global success stories of this century."
Immediately before, Blair had said his farewell to Downing Street and parliament, and tendered his resignation to the queen.
Blair is widely expected to be named special envoy to the so- called Middle East Quartet of the United Nations, the United States, the European Union and Russia.
Earlier, Blair had been given a rapturous farewell in parliament, where politicians of all parties gave him a standing ovation.
During his last appearance at the dispatch box, he praised the British armed forces for their role in Iraq and Afghanistan and said he was "sorry" for the dangers they were facing.
Blair and his wife were swept out of Buckingham Palace after the audience, and were believed to be on their way to Sedgefield, Blair's parliamentary constituency in northern Britain.
Blair, Cherie and their four children Euan, 23, Nicky, 21, Kathryn, 19, and Leo, 7, had earlier appeared on the steps of Downing Street for a last time.
The picture resembled that of May, 1997, when the Blairs, except Leo, first moved into Downing Street after Blair's landslide election victory.
