Prime Minister and Cabinet

• Roles of the PM

  • Chief executive
  • Chief legislator
  • Chief diplomat
  • Public relations chief
  • Party leader
• Main functions

  • Leading the government with overall responsibility for domestic and foreign policy
  • Selecting the cabinet
  • Dominant figure in the core executive
  • Representing the country in meetings
  • Chairing cabinet meetings
• Core executive

  • The collective term for the key players in government policy making
  • Made up of the PM, cabinet and committees
• Primus inter pares

  • Traditional notion that the prime minister is 'first among equals'
  • Nowadays Prime ministers have a lot more power
• Prime Ministers powers

  • Royal perogative
  • Shaping and deciding policy
  • Patronage - choosing their cabinet and promoting, demoting and reshuffling members
  • Leader of the largest party in parliament so they can normally get legislation through
• The cabinet

  • 20 senior government ministers and key officials appointed by the PM
  • Most work is done in cabinet committees
  • Most members are MPs but some are peers
  • Prime Ministers often reshuffle their cabinet to bring in new talent
• The cabinet 2

  • Cabinet proceedings are kept secret - collective cabinet responsibility
  • Prime Ministers rarely have votes in the cabinet and agreed on consensus
  • The cabinet is characterised by informal smaller groupings as the inner cabinet
  • Tony Blair had his 'sofa cabinet'
• Cabinet Committees

  • Groups of ministers that take collective decisions
  • Membership consists of ministers from related departments to enable joined-up government
• Collective cabinet responsibility

  • When all members of the cabinet must openly agree with the policy publicly even if they disagree privately
• Inner Cabinet

  • People believe this is where the real decisions are made
• Individual responsibility

  • Each minister is responsible for the actions in their department
  • In theory, mistakes should make ministers resign but that's not the case
  • Ministers blame civil servants for mistakes instead
  • Fall of personal conduct or breach in ministerial code results in resignations
• Dismissal for breaching ministerial code

  • Priti Patel was forced to resign as international development secretary by Theresa May
  • She wasn't open about private meetings with Israeli ministers
  • She wasn't truthful when the story emerged either
• Collective cabinet responsibility

  • Convention that all ministers must defend gov policies
  • Ministers should resign if not
  • This can be suspended if there's a divine split in the cabinet
  • This can be breached privately by leaking information to journalists
• Collective ministerial responsibility example

  • Iain Duncan Smith resigned in 2016 as pension secretary
  • Left Cameron's cabinet over planned cuts to disability benefits
  • Felt unable to support this policy
• Individual responsibility

  • Sir Thomas Dugdale's 1954 resignation
  • Inquiry found flaws in procedures and practices with civil servants
  • Dugdale resigned even though he had nothing to do with
  • Resigned because he accepted full responsibility for the actions of officials in his department
• Power of PM and cabinet in policy making  - Poll tax 1990

  • Manifesto pledge in 1987
  • Desire to spread the cost of local government services
  • Policy was strongly backed my Margaret Thatcher
  • Trialed in Scotland and it was unpopular
  • Thatcher was facing increasing criticism of her dictatorial style
• Outcome of Poll Tax

  • Faced left hostility and many refused to pay the tax
  • Mass protests and violent ones
  • Opposition was strong in labour areas
  • Conservative MPs disliked the policy and Michael Heseltine resigned which is known as her downfall
  • Thatcher failed to win leadership and resigned and the policy was scrapped into council tax
• COVID-19 pandemic

  • Brought challenges to Johnson's gov and the NHS
  • Policy was mainly based on events that happened
  • Lots of early criticism based on health workers and track and trace
  • Prime minister could only dictate policy like lockdowns and devolved powers governed themselves
  • Policy was influenced by medical experts like the SAGE committee
• Outcome of COVID-19

  • Government handling was mixed, the track and trace system was operated by private companies was shambolic suggesting a lack of prep
  • Dominic Cummings criticised the handling and stated anyone else would act differently
  • Allegations of parties at Downing street tarnished conservative support
• Cabinet government

  • Executive power is voted in a cabinet made up of seniors
  • Every minister gets a say
  • PM is first among equals
  • PMs Start off with cabinet lik Thatcher
• Prime ministerial government

  • Prime minister is the dominant player in the executive
  • Set the direction of government
  • Cabinet is an advisory body instead of a decision making body
  • Caused conflict in thatchers gov like Michael heseltine resigning
• Presidential government

  • Inspired by the American style president
  • Personalised leaderdship
  • Public outreach
  • Focus in advice from an inner circle
  • Tony Blair and Cameron