prime minister and the cabinet Flashcards
(21 cards)
How do PMs select their Cabinet
-Selected at the start of their premiership
-After this, cabinets are often ‘reshuffled’ through replacing ministers in order to maintain their authority and keep the cabinet fresh
Individual competence and experience
-Running a complex government is difficult, PMs choose ministers with knowledge and experience
-E.g. Jeremy Hunt brought in as Chancellor by Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak, who has served in the cabinet for 9 years since 2010
-Not always the case, Liz Truss appointed Kwasi Kwarteng and James Cleverly to important roles with limited experience, often for their prospects
Establishing quthority
-PMs establish their authority by removing certain cabinet ministers and replacing them with their allies
-Liz Truss removed members of Johnson’s cabinet including Priti Patel and Nadine Dorries
Loyalty and Political Reliability
-PMs seek to reward the loyalty of key allies.
-2020 cabinet, Boris Johnson sacked Northern Ireland secretary Julian Smith and replaced him with Brandon Smith, as the former had spoken out against a no deal Brexit
-Kwasi Kwarteng was a key ally to Liz Truss
Ideological balance
-Representation of different factions of the party
-Opposing members are unable to publicly challenge the government due to collective responsibility
-Theresa May appointed a cabinet with a balance between Brexiteers and Remainers
Direct representation and diversity
-PMs often attempt to ensure their cabinet is somewhat representative of the population
-Blair appointed Margaret Becket as Britain’s first female Foreign Secretary and Brown appointed Jacqui Smith as the first female Home Secretary.
-Overall, men still formed a signficant majority of New Labour’s cabinets though.
Management skills of the PM
-PMs can use their powers to shape the cabinet to promote their policy priorities and enhance their power, as well as maintain authority
-If a PM becomes too dominant, this may also cause discontent and result in them being removed by the cabinet, as was the case with Thatcher in 1990, with the resignation of Geoffrey Howe.
-Theresa May failed to effectively manage her cabinet and was constantly undermined by leaking and briefing against government, particularly by Boris Johnson
PM ability to set the agenda
-PM chairs all cabinet meetings and sums up the discussion at the end, leads people towards desired positions.
-Cabinet cannot vote, allowing the PM to sum up the discussion in a way that suits them
-PM can also keep things off the agenda, e.g. Theresa May who prevented a vote on whether a ‘no deal’ Brexit should be an option
Use of Cabinet Committees and Informal Groups to Make Decisions
-PMs have more control in smaller forums than a whole cabinet. Use smaller cabinet committees and bi-lateral meetings to make decisions
-Tony Blair and Chancellor Gordon Brown negotiated with each other to determine economic policy. Blair’s style of govening dubbed ‘sofa government’
Use of Special Advisors to make decisions
-Unelected and hired directly by PM, working closely with them
-Major had just 8, but by 2005 Blair had thrity
-Dominic Cummings held a very signficant amount of power in Johnson’s government, arguably more than some cabinet members, going so far as to defend him for breaking COVID rules at the cost of his popularity
Growth of Downing Street
-Since Blair, PMs have gained the support of large departments such as the Prime Minister’s Office and the Cabinet Office, centralizes power from the ministers departments
-Cameron strengthened the centre with the creation of a Policy and Implementation Unit in 2011
-Blair attempted to exercise considerable contorl over the government’s messaging in the media, using the Communications and Strategy Directorate
Size of a government’s majority
-Large majority means that PM can upset certain parts of the party whilst still being able to pass legislation
-Blair’s majority allowed him to endure several rebellions from Labour’s left
-Theresa May had much less control over her cabinet after losing her majority in 2017, Brexiteers consistently briefing and speaking against government
Popularity of PM
-If the PM is popular with the electorate, they will be supported by their cabinet, as the PM’s popularity helps their MPs get elected. If they are unpopular they will be seen as an electoral liability
-Thatcher’s downfall in popularity after trying to push through with the Poll tax led to key members of her cabinet resigning.
How unified a party is
-PM with a divided party may struggle to keep the support of opposing factions
-Divisions over Europe caused difficulties for May, Brexiteer caucus European Research Group clashed with One-nation conservatives
Wider political and economic context
-Crises not handled well can define and harm a PM’s premiership
-E.g. Gordon Brown following the 2008 financial crisis
-If a PM can handle them well, their reputation and control can be enhanced. E.g. Cameron was praised for his response to the 2011 London riots
‘Spatial Leadership’
-Concept developed by Michael Foley linked to ‘presidentialization’
-PMs distance themselves from the party and government for which they are responsible
-Use the media to develop personal popularity
-2019, Johnson distanced himself from the Conservative Party, presented himself as a change even though they were in power for 9 years
Arguments for presidentialization, head of state
-Context of foreign policy and crises they act like a head of state
-Tony Blair foreign policy during Iraq and close relationship with George Bush
-Prime Minister represents the UK in international conferences such as the G7 and G20
-COVID, Johnson rallied the country behind him whilst hosting regular press conferences about the pandemic on TV
Presidentialization, Media
-Tony Blair was successful in courting support from the right-wing press and developing his personal image. Due to his popularity, he was able to determine a lot of policy himself
-Coverage of British politics is largely centered around party leaders, including Prime Minister’s Questions
No presidentialization, legislature and party
-They are still accountable both to their party and parliament and have to keep both on side in order to effectively pursue their goals.
-Rely on the votes of MPs to pass legislation
-Also need to maintain support of their cabinet, as they can remove a PM
No presidentialization, PM still relies on Cabinet
-Core-executive model means that power is fragmented and the PM relies on cabinet ministers to run their departments. PMs act more as managers using their appointment power and ability to offer coordination to gain as much influence as possible
No presidentialization, events and divided party
-The ability of a PM to act like a President is limited by their personality and events outside of their control.
-Major, Brown and May were less able to act presidential than Thatcher or Blair
-Also limited by the size of their majority, as seen with David Cameron who was in charge of a coalition government
