London, April 10 (DPA): Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown will not be attending the opening ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics in August, but a spokesperson said he had never intended to go in the first place.

A Downing Street spokesperson said Wednesday that Brown had, however, always planned to attend the closing ceremony, long before the protests began against the Olympics torch bearers carrying the flame around the world, including in London and Paris.

Brown would attend the closing ceremony when Britain accepts the Olympic torch from China ahead of the 2012 games in London, as was already announced in March, the spokesperson said.

She said the move did not represent a boycott.

"Our reasons for going are exactly the came as they have always been. We still think it is the right thing to do. There is no change in our position."