Other Definitions
premier (dict)
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PremierA premier is an executive official of government. In many nations the term "premier" is used interchangeably with the title of "prime minister." For example, the "Italian Premier" or the "Japanese Premier." In the People's Republic of China it is used somewhat more commonly but still interchangeably with Prime Minister (See also: Premier of the People's Republic of China). In certain British overseas territories, such as Bermuda, the elected head of government is called the "premier". In others, he or she is called the chief minister. It is also the name of the heads of government in the provinces and territories of Canada, provinces of South Africa, the states of Australia, and the nation of Niue (in some of these cases the formal title remains "Prime Minister" but "Premier" is used to avoid confusion with the national prime minister). In cases like Canada, care should be used, the title of "Premier" should not be confused with Prime Minister. The name of the leader for the province are titled as Premiers, the leader of the nation, or federal government is called the Prime Minister. These should not be confused; as in this case, the title of "Premier" can be likened to what a Governor is to a state, in the United States, while a "Prime Minister" would be seen as what is the "President of the United States of America". A second in command to a Premier is designated as a Vice-Premier or Deputy Premier. In the Soviet Union the title of Premier was applied to the Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars or, after 1946, to the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR. This term derives from the parliamentary form of government, and is quite different from a president. A near-approximant of this term in the presidential system of government of the USA is the Speaker of the House of Representatives, which had more power in the nineteenth century, that is, before Theodore Roosevelt vastly increased the importance of the office of the president. But a Speaker of the House never had so much power as a premier. As an example of how this term is used, the French Fifth Republic has both a "premier" and a "president". The former has a level of power in between that of the Speaker of the House of Representatives of the U.S. and the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. This apportionment of power prevents the French president from having as much power, in ordinary times, as one of a fully presidential system of government. In times of crisis the French president has emergency powers that the American president does not have, power even over the premier. See also
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