Rt. Hon. is an abbreviation of the
Right Honourable, the
style by which members of the British
Privy Council are addressed. Among the holders of the style 'Rt. Hon' are
- Prime Minister Tony Blair;
- Former British prime ministers Sir Edward Heath, Lord Callaghan[?], Baroness Thatcher and John Major.
- All members of the current British Labour cabinet;
- All surviving members of past cabinets;
- Politicians of senior level (eg, Minister, Minister of State) beneath cabinet rank;
- Senior politicians who have held government rank of senior levels beneath cabinet rank in all past ministries;
- Leaders of recognised political parties (ie, parties who have a total number of MPs of sufficient level to warrant parliamentary time). Among recognised parties are The Labour Party, the Conservative Party, the Liberal Democrats, and the Ulster Unionists[?].
- Senior peers and churchmen.
Membership of the Privy Council enables an individual to receive priority treatment in House of Commons and House of Lords debates. It also enables a person to receive confidential briefings on matters of major importance.