Government

• Cabinet:

  • responsible for providing political leadership
  • policy makers
  • collective
  • power house of government
• PM chairs the cabinet & manages its agenda. Organises the structure of government.
• Cabinet: 20-30 senior ministers which deliver policy.
• Government departments: headed by a minister, responsible for specific areas of policy.
• Executive agencies: semi-independent bodies that carry out some of the functions of government departments like the DVLA (Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency) overseen by the department for transport.
• Obstructions to core executive power:

  • Devolution- parliament can still overrule them
  • The EU
  • Bank of England, sets interest rates & leader cannot be fired
  • Privatisation
• Junior ministers support senior ones, standing for them at ministers questions. Usually are responsible for specific areas of policy like education has a junior minister for schools.
• Some non-cabinet figures attend cabinet meetings like attorney general and chief whip.
• Payroll vote is that 90 government MPS are expected to always vote with the government.
• "Primus inter panes" = 1st among equals, the PM is a spokesperson for the government and equal to other cabinet ministers.
• Royal prerogative powers are exercised on behalf of the monarch by the PM/executive. Traditional by nature but the 2011 fixed term... is an example of modern change. (removed PMs power/prerogative to call elections)
• RP powers:

  • patronage of ministers
  • sign & negotiate international treaties
  • head of civil service
  • Deploy the military - declare war (Yemen) (convention to consult Parliament)
  • Call elections and award honours (now a "independent body")
• Initiation of Legislation- Guillotine is a procedure that allows government to curtail debate on the individual causes of a Bill. Cameron tried to use this in a Lords debate on redrawing constituencies.
• Initiation of Legislation- Blairs gov introduced the programming motion that enables the executive to set out in advance time limits for each stage in the passage of a bill.
• Initiation of legislation- Since 2002 it was made possible to carry over uncompleted legislation from 1 session to another without having to restart.
• Secondary (delegated) legislation is a law made without passing a new act of parliament.
• Cabinet committees are groups of ministers that have discussions and decisions to take place with fewer ministers than in the full cabinet. Chaired by the PM, Deputy, chancellor or home secretary.
• PM has the power to set up cabinet committees and appointing there members. Committees report back to the full cabinet, which usually accept what they say, there are 25, example Scotland committee.
• Statutory instruments enable the gov to modify or repeal existing legislation without introducing a new bill. 2016 statutory instruments used to abolish maintenance grants for uni students and to allow fraking in national parks.
• Critics are concerned with statutory instruments being used to make controversial changes, as a "backdoor" to evade parliamentary scrutiny ("Henry VIII clauses"). Parliament can technically reject/debate instruments but 2/3 become law without being put before MPs.
• Elective dictatorship coined in 1972, parliament is dominated by the government of the day so bills will pass. Along with strict party disciplines creates a dictatorship.
• Limitations of power:

  • personality = not persuasive to the public
  • parliamentary unity or lack
  • size of majority
  • public/media = confidence in the government
  • events/crisis management
• Limitations - powers over the party:

  • loyalty can be dependent on possibility of electoral success
  • backbench rebellions
  • risk of leadership challenge
• Limitations- institutional support for PM:

  • PMs office is small compared to presidential system
  • other gov departments size/power overshadows PMs office
  • no formal PM department, cabinet, press office and NO. 10 policy unite.
• Limitations- powers over cabinet/government:

  • "Big Beasts" have their own authority
  • any threat of resignation can damage the PM (Boris suffered 22 ministerial resignations in 2 days)
  • PMs position is dependent of cabinet support
• Roles of the cabinet:

  • formal policy approval- becomes official
  • policy coordination and ideas
  • resolve government disputes- forum for disputes
  • Debate policy
• Roles of the cabinet:

  • party/parliamentary business management
  • symbol of collective government
  • managing emergencies
• Modern Cabinet:

  • 23 cabinet ministers, 33 attend cabinet meetings
  • different departments are represented
  • 2022 58% of cabinet members attended fee-paying schools pop 7%
  • 16% of CM are from ethnic minorities while pop is 25.6%
• Factors affecting cabinet & PMs relationship:

  -management skills of the PM -PMs ability to set out an agenda

  -the use of cabinet committees & groups to take decisions

  -the development of the PMs and cabinet office

  -the impact of the wider political/economic situation
• Cabinet is still very important:

  • makes key decisions, general strategy/goals(2017 election)
  • can overrule/remove the PM (Margret |Thatcher)
  • ministers are in charge of large departments are powerful (treasury)
• Cabinet is still very important:

  • PM needs the cabinets support (deciding on the brexit deal)
  • deal with emergencies/crisis so PM is not alone (COBRA)
  • effective place for ministers to deal with disputes and unite (reconcile coalition partners)
• Cabinet is not very important:

  • PM has significant powers of patronage over the cabinet
  • PMs may use special advisors instead of the cabinet
  • meet for less time & tend to "rubber stamp" decisions
• Cabinet is not very important:

  • PM chairs/controls nature of cabinet/committees shapes agenda
  • growth of committees is seen as a "inner" cabinet
  • collective responsibility gives the PM power to silence dissenters
• The shadow cabinet is to hold the government to account, sit on the frontbench, challenge ministers and present opposing policy. They dont have any civil servants, instead independent advisors.
• Current shadow cabinet key figures:

  • Leader of the Opposition - Keir Starmer
  • Deputy - Angela Rayner
  • Energy Security & Net 0 Secretary - Ed Miliband
• The parliamentary under secretary of state (or parliamentary secretary) is the lowest of three tiers of government minister in the UK.
• Selecting Ministers:

  • Allies = (Ed Balls under Gordon Brown)
  • Adversary = to silence critics (Theresa May & Boris Johnson)
  • Big Beasts = popular in the party (BJ under Theresa May or Vince Cable under David Cameron)
  • Competence = ability to do job
• Selecting Ministers:

  • Government experience
  • Politics = ideologically balanced cabinet (Thatcherite + moderate views)
  • Social = e.g. promotion of women
  • Parliament experience = outspoken in the house
• Individual ministerial responsibility: official definition is set out in the ministerial code. That ministers are responsible for their departments/policies as well as their own conduct.
• Collective ministerial responsibility: Convention/responsibility of ministers to support government decisions as a group in parliament. That discussions in cabinet should be confidential.