PM Is Now Presidential? Flashcards
(8 cards)
Theme 1: how can the PM act like the Head of State?
Tony Blair close w Bush- drove foreign policy in relation to Iraq war, with little discussion around cabinet and denied ministers access to key documents
Thatcher-uncompromising Iron Lady, strong hegemony to make swift decisions around military bought UK to victory in Falkland war
Presidential- take matters into their own hands, especially in the context of foreign policy and emergencies
How can the PM not act like the head of state
Ability to act presidential is limited by personality and events outside their control
May, stepped into gov during an unstable time, weak majority, failed to pass her Brexit 3 times, 432/202=2.139 weak
Cameron, hampered by size of majority, forced into coalition, struggled to act presidentially as he had to cooperate with nick clegg, Lib Dem’s
What is the west wing?
Downing Street has grown into a kind of west wing supporting the PM, providing a significant administrative support , decreasing reliance on cabinet for decision making
Do PMs have a west wing?
In recent years, special advisors have occupied important role in Downing Street and in decision making. These r unelected and hired directly by PM.
E.g. special advisor, Dominic Cummings, held a significant amount of power in BoJo gov, arguably, far more than any cabinet minister or other member. Jo supported him so much that he drove from London to barnard castle to defend him after breaking Covid rules, risking fracturing his party image and popularity
Sig, in past, PM had little central support and relied a great deal on cabinet for decision making, however, now, PM r well supported by cabinet and PM’s office akin to WW in US, enabling them to have overview of policy an drive strategy across gov
No PM’s don’t have a WW
Still rely heavily on cabinet and have far less control and administrative capacity than WW in America
E.g. Covid, jo had to rely on gov ministers, especially, health secretary Matt Hancock, indicating that PM seek to act as mangers , using their appointed power and ability to offer some coordination in an effort to gain as much influence as possible
Sig- as the PM’s power is very fragmented and PM can’t control all of gov policy in detail due to uk gov operating under a core executive model
Can PM develop personal legitimacy and popularity similar to presidents
PM can use media to reach out to public and forge a level of support that can allow them to drive thru policy . This has been aided by the growth of TV and social media, which allows TV debates between leaders becoming key fixtures of campaign ( trump v Harris)
Tony Blair, reached out to the public ‘people’s princess’ speech, possessive pronoun ‘I’, build personal connection w audience and set tone for national mourning
Akin to Obama
Can’t develop personal legitimacy
As they are ultimately still accountable both to party, parliament.
If a PM distances themselves to much from either sidelines in cabinet, the cabinet can remove them.
E.g. thatcher’s poll tax faced opposition from both side to where she didn’t consult local authorities fully. Her sidelining of the cabinet and conviction politics ultimately came back own to bite her and bring her down
Overall conclusion
Whilst it is true that foreign policy and emergencies enable the PM to act like a Head of state, they aren’t presidential as they ultimately rely on cabinet and party to retain power
