The Prime Minister and the Executive Flashcards
First among others
Being a leader but not having total control over everything.
Walter Bagehot book: English Constitution (1867)
Cabinet government
A system of government in which executive power is vested in a cabinet whose members exercise collective responsibility, rather than a single office.
Prime Ministerial Government
A system of government in which the Prime Minister is the dominant actor in the executive.
What is the core executive?
The core executive is that part of government that implements policy. This covers the Prime Minister, the Cabinet, the Cabinet Committees, the Cabinet Office, the government departments and the Senior Civil Service.
What are the powers of the Prime Minister?
- Appointing ministers
- royal prerogative powers
- government policies
- machinery/organisation of the government
- Ministers need to seek approval before they appoint external adviser
- Full control of the armed forces
On what is the power of the PM dependent?
- Media
- Popularity in the party and electorate
- Personality (funny, charismatic, confident)
- Economic stability
- scandals in the own party
Prime Ministerial Predominance
Prime ministerial predominance can enable the prime minister to lead, if not command, the core executive, and, in concert with others, to direct, if not control, its policy development.
Why might the office of the PM has become more presidential?
Personalised leadership – dominant political personality.
Public outreach – political leaders have become more popular
Spatial leadership – A sense of distance has been created between the PM and the government and party
Individual Ministerial Responsibility
Ministers have individual responsibility for what happens in their department.
They should justify their actions during parliamentary debates as well as in written responses and by appearing at select committees.
Collective Ministerial Responsibility
- According to the principle of collective ministerial responsibility, if the government loses a vote of confidence in the House of Commons, the whole government must resign (Confidence Vote)
- The discussions of the cabinet must kept secret in order to maintain integrity of the government (Secrecy)
- Government decisions have to be taken collectively. If a minister cannot do this, they have to resign (Binding decisions)
Ministerial Code
Ministerial Code setting out the standards of conduct expected of ministers and how they discharge their duties. First uncodified and then codified.
What are the strengths of the IMR?
Strengths
- Accountability of one particular person. This stops the government from “passing the buck”
- The civil servants are kept on its toes because they know that their mistakes can cause the job of a minister.
- It facilitates the work of the opposition – every minister has an opponent in the shadow Cabinet
What are the strengths of the CMR?
Strengths
- Reinforces the idea of a cabinet which sends a united message.
- It encourages in a “joined-up thinking” in government as decisions taken by one department will inevitably impact on others.
- It encourages debate to happen behind closed doors.
What are the functions of the cabinet?
- The cabinet provides the key forum in which government policies are legitimised
- The cabinet determines key issues of policy
- To decide how the government will determine business
- If a dispute between two departments of state is proving impossible to resolve, then the issue may be brought to cabinet as a final court
How is the cabinet selected?
- Influenceable and famous MPs are more likely to be a member of the cabinet especially when the prime minister does not have a lot of support.
Example: Harold Wilson appointed Gordon Brown as Chancellor because he had more support of the party than Wilson even of the fact that Wilson won. - The prime minister could include potential rivals in government since this binds them to collective ministerial responsibility or the PM can cultivate their loyalty through a promotion
- Appointing ethnic minorities and more females makes the cabinet look more like the country it serves
Example: Theresa May appointed more females and ethnic minorities than no one before
On what factors does a PM decide which people to include in their cabinet?
- Pack the cabinet with own allies – unity, makes decision making easier but also not critical enough
- A balanced cabinet – different approaches, critical views, “ a group of all the talents”
- Best possible people
- Neutralise a potential rebel or rival – because of collective responsibility, this way can be effective silencing a criticiser.
- Rewarding loyalty and including key allies – loyal behaviour may results in an appointment. That is why MP´s try to “behave”. Brown and Blair.
- Meeting expectations of diversity – diversity of ethnics, gender and social status
