Individual Ministerial Responsibility

Question 1

What is the principle of ministers?

Answer 1

That they are accountable to:
Parliament for their personal conduct
The general conduct of their department
The policies they and their department pursue
The actions of officials within their departments

Question 2

Governments have redefined the convention so that ministers shouldn’t be held personally responsible for:

Answer 2

Decisions made in their department without their knowledge

Operational matters handled by officials in departments or executive agencies

Question 3

How has individual ministerial responsibility been weakened?

Answer 3

“It was the civil servants’ fault”
“I didn’t know about it”
“I’m not responsible for how the policy was carried out”

Question 4

[“It was the civil servants’ fault”] What have governments long drawn a distinction Between?

Answer 4

Ministerial accountability (i.e a minister’s duty to give an account to parliament) and their individual responsibility

Question 5

[“It was the civil servants’ fault”] Example

Answer 5

In 1954, Sir David Maxwell-Fyfe stated that ministers can’t be held responsible for decisions taken by civil servants without their knowledge, or which they disagree with

Question 6

[“It was the civil servants’ fault”] What aren’t ministers obliged to do? What are they constitutionally responsible for?

Answer 6

Ministers aren’t obliged to resign if failings are traceable to the action (or inaction) of civil servants, but they are constitutionally responsible for informing parliament of the actions of their department

Question 7

[“I didn’t know about it”] What did the 1996 Scott Report state?

Answer 7

The 1996 Scott Report on the sale of arms to Iraq stated that ministers had a duty to be as open as possible, withholding information only when disclosure wouldn’t be in the public interest, but ministers are culpable only if they misled Parliament knowingly

Question 8

[“I didn’t know about it”] What did the Ministerial Code state?

Answer 8

The Ministerial Code states that ministers must give ‘accurate and truthful information to Parliament… [those who] knowingly mislead Parliament will be expected to offer their resignation’

Question 9

[“I didn’t know about it”] Example

Answer 9

Immigration minister Beverley Hughes resigned in 2004 after admitting that she unwittingly gave Parliament a misleading impression on checks on migrants from Eastern Europe

Question 10

[“I’m not responsible for how the policy was carried out”] What are ministers responsible for? What are officials responsible for?

Answer 10

Ministers are responsible for policy, but officials are responsible for day-to-day operational matters

Question 11

[“I’m not responsible for how the policy was carried out”] Example

Answer 11

The head of the UK Border Force, Brodie Clark resigned in 2011 after border control was relaxed without ministerial agreement. He went beyond a pilot scheme requiring fewer checks on passengers by also suspending some passport checks, an action which had not been authorised by home secretary Theresa May