Comp 2: PM And Executive Flashcards
Cabinet importance
- cabinet makes key decisions like snap election in 2017
- but pm manipulates politics discussion. Blair informal sofa cabinet
- big beasts importance like 2020 Rishi Sunak being popular Tory politician with public and backbenchers
- but minister control cabinet and agenda - doctrine of collective responsibility gives pm power.
- cabinet can over rule and remove pms like thatcher, Blair and may. Cameron with small majority needed cabitnet on his side.
- but pm still dominant especially with a majority
- reshuffle can lead to disharmony like mays cabinet reshuffle leading to Hunt refusing to move from health dep.
- but pm have has significant powers of patronage
- cabinet respond to emergencies like 7/7 terrorist attacks, and Covid 19
- pm dictates the cabinet coms that do this
Pm power for
Patronage
- thatchers including ‘wets’ ( one nation tories) in her cabinet
- 202 bjs reshuffle removed Javid, who refused to get rid of special advisors and got Sunak.
Cabinet control
- 2010 coalition Cameron had informal meetings with the quad, him and 3 of his main ministers.
Party leadership
- Johnson’s 2019 80 seat majority the tories quickly supported eu withdrawal agreement legislation despite refusing may.
Institutional support
- special advisors
Pm power style and personality
- thatcher - transformational leader with strong ideological convictions so lots of power
- major - steady but boring
- Blair - powerful because we wash fresh and charismatic
- brown lacked power due to his suspicious introverted self.
- Cameron - hands off approach, reluctant to interfere with outside responsibilities.
- may - suspicious introverted
- bj - extroverted and quite persuasive
Executive
THE GOVT!
- cabinet - chanceller, foreign secretary, home secretary, etc. consult with pm, advise pm, but dependent of patronage
- junior ministers - responsibility for smaller sections of departments. Appointed by monarch, dependent on patronage, may be unpaid if over limit of jms allowed - cainet committees - groups of ministers to make depictions, and deal with emergency issues. Reduce burden on whole cabinet.
- govt departments - civil servants bound to neutrality
PMs rn and cabinet ministers
Pm = Rishi Sunak
Chancellor of the Exchequer = Jeremy Hunt
Foreign secretary = David Cameron
Home Secretary = James Cleverly
Pm govt vs presidentialism vs cabinet govt
Prime ministerial govt = the pm holds power not the cabinet. The pm dominates executive and parliament in all policy areas.
Presidentialism = similar to pm govt. pm dominant with cabinet. Focused onm perfecting image and personality, distanced from party and advocating personal views over party ideologies.
Cabinet govt = collective power in cabinet not pm only. Equality and all ministers have policy influence. Collective responsibility (constitutional convention that cabinet members must support all delicious made in cabinet even if they don’t privately agree. Must vote of govt in legislation)
BJ showed all 3 models in his time as pm, but mainly cabinet govt because many of his cabinet ministers gave frequent Covid updates and reports.
Prerogative power
- permission to end parliamentary session
- BJ requested to shut for 5 weeks but this was found to be unlawful
- he only wanted to avoid scrutiny
- 2024 sunaks govt carried out joint air strikes with US against Houthi targets in responce to Yemeni group attacking cargo ships, but without parliament consent
Thatcher - majority, successes, failures
- 1979 - 44 majority
- 1983 - 144 majority
Successes:
Economic policy - improving economy, privatised state owned companies like British airways. Aimed to reduce power of trade unions.
Foreign policy - 1982 falklands success - recaptured islands after Argentina invaded gave image or Iron Lady.
Terrorism - speech after she was nearly killed by Irish Republican Army bombing of her hotel.
Failures:
Cabinet - alienated by party after poll tax increase, Howe and Lawson resigned
Economics - 3 million unemployed and rioting, introduced unpopular poll tax
Terrorism - IRA high risk of terrorism
Had to resign
Blair - majority, successes, failures
1997 - 179 majority
Successes:
Cabinet - highly popular, sofa govt, charisma
Economic policy - lowered national vat tax
Foreign - signed goof Friday agreement 1998, gained popularity from affairs interventions with Kosovo and Sierra Leone.
Terrorism - praised after visiting USA after twin towers
Failures:
Cabinet - pact with chancellor Gordon brown that he would step down as pm after 1 year wasn’t followed and the relationship broke down leading to brown refusing to update Blair of budget details.
Economic policy - brown fiasco
Foreign - after math of 9/11 in 2001 lead to joining bush in invading Iraq to find weapons but proved wrong
Terrorism - rebellions after detention of terrorists decision
Thatcher vs Blair
Similar:
- heavy reforms like Blair’s constitutional reform and thatchers privatisation
- both large majorities .
Differences:
- economics
- thatcher privatised everything
- but Blair spent on public services
Cameron
2010 - 306 seats
2015 - 10 majority
Successes:
Cabinet - formed quad and close working relationship with clegg
Economics - public spending cuts aimed to pay off deficit. Aimed to increase uni fees. Narrowed gender pay gap. 22% in 2009. 14.3% in 2023
Foreign - 2014 convinced Scott’s to remain in union. 2011 av referendum
Constitutional issues - won av referendum
Failures:
Cabinet - cabitnet defeated him
Economics - austerity measure in 2008 ( limited spending) failed to close gaps in society
Forgin - first pm in 100 years to lose foreign policy vote . Labour blocked his policy for ilitary intervention in Syria.
Constitutional issues - “tone deaf” EU campaign, reigned morning after he lost referendum
Other
May
2016 - party leader
2017 - 9 seats short of a majority
Cameron vs may
Johnson majority successes and failures
80 seat majority
Successes:
Cabinet - won party support,
Economics - furlough scheme gave employees 80% of wages and small business grant of £10,000 and £25,000, eat out to help out , increased public sector spending like raising school funding, aimed for levelling up.
Foreign. - negotiate deal replacing backstop with NI protocol. Kept NI in EU single market for goods maintaining border. Created customs border in Irish Sea.
Other - vaccination programme 90% of people double vaccinated by 2022.
Failures:
Cabinet - big beasts, rebel Tory MPs.
Economics- £1 billion of hospital money came from Nash provides not new funding , austerity policies ended with only 107 mil delivered in. 2021-22
Other - prorogued parliament to avoid blocking Brexit deal but found unlawful. Partygate scandal. Sexual misconduct allocations for former Tory chief whip.
Truss
Successes:
Cabinet - diverse
Economics. - pledged tax cuts to address energy crisis. Tried capping house energy bills to. £25,00 annually, economic growth predicted funded by borrowing
Other - won leadership election, tribute to the queen
Failures :
Cabinet - after mini budget critics in party, fired kwartsng and replace with hunt. 37 tories rebelled
Economics- pound fell to lowest rate, rise in bond market, mini budget caused recession. And cost of living crisis.
Resigned at 45 days
