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Politics > Prime Minister & Cabinet > Flashcards

Prime Minister & Cabinet Flashcards

1
Q

Who is in the core executive?

A

PM
Cabinet and cabinet comittees
Key civil servants
Departments and their heads

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2
Q

What was thatcher’s style of cabinet

A

Authoritarian
Dictatorial
Hectoring

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3
Q

What was blair’s cabinet like?

A

Short- aprox 45 minutes

and not required. Issues had already been discussed

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4
Q

What was majors cabinet like?

A 
Leaky cabinet 
Major has a hard time 
Ministers disagreeing with everything
Euroskeptics 
3 hours or more
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5
Q

What was the history of the term Prime minister?

A

First among equals

Primus inter pares

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6
Q

Jack straw quote

A

It is better to have people to be awarded on their own merit rather than the alleged merit of their foreberers

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7
Q

What is cabinet reshuffle?

A

When the PM rotates or changes the composition of members in cabinet

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8
Q

How many members in cabinet?

A

Generally 20-30 wartime was smaller- 5

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9
Q

Why reshuffle?

A

MP’s can be politically difficult to keep in- Jackie Smith

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10
Q

What is a kitchen cabinet?

A

Informal , not minuted, secrecy, Blair used a lot

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11
Q

Who do you appoint?

A

Big beasts
“Better to have the bastards inside the tent pissing out than outside the tent pissing in” Eisenhower
People with similar ideologies- Thatcher
Wilson picked a broad spectrum of ideologies

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12
Q

Why do you appoint?

A

Reward for “good behaviour”

Carrot and stick approach

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13
Q

What did Asquith say about reshuffles?

A

“The first essential for a PM is to be a good butcher”

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14
Q

Example of reshuffle?

A

Harold McMillan
night of the long knives- 1962
Sacked a third of cabinet

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15
Q

Freedom of PM?

A

PM appoints members
Ability to reshuffle
Thatcher sacked Lawson over ERM membership

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16
Q

Constraints on PM with cabinet?

A

Big beasts
Leaky cabinet
Blair couldn’t butcher brown

17
Q

What is the only power of the PM

A

The only power of the PM is the power to persuade - Anthony King

18
Q

We should have a smaller cabinet?

A

Members will be free of departmental workload
Meeting can be more frequently organised
Easier for PM to steer
Ministers would stop defending departmental interest

19
Q

Describe the cabinet secretary?

A

Head of secretariat
Speaks to PM daily
Sets cabinet agenda with PM
Attends cabinet meetings

20
Q

Why is the cabinet secretary a powerful position?

A

Power to influence PM
Knowledge of previous cabinet minutes
Anonymity
Experiance - only 10 since post war

21
Q

Describe the cabinet office?

A 
Assists cabinet secretariat 
Contains 1500 civil servant 
Supports PM
Supports the cabinet 
Coordinates security and intelligence 
Deals with national emergency 
Blair years saw closer ties between PM and cabinet office
22
Q

Collective responsibility quote?

A

Lord Melbourne “it doesn’t matter what we say as long as we all tell the same story”

23
Q

Why do we have collective responsibility?

A

Shows United party
Shows ministers have the same views
Avoids confusion for the electorate

24
Q

Who created cabinet office?

A

Lloyd George

25
Q

Roles of PM?

A 
Head of government and civil service.
Chief legislator
Chief diplomat
Public relations chief 
Party chief
26
Q

Describe prime ministers office?

A

Contains spads
Set up by Wilson
Bridge between PM and party- joined up government
Press office

27
Q

The power of the PM is unlimited?

A

Uncodified constitution
Collective responsibility
Shaper parliament
Growth of Pm’s office

28
Q

The Pm’s power is limited?

A

Backbenchers
Events
Media
Big beasts

29
Q

Quote of sun to John major

A

“I’ve got a bucket of shit and I’m going to pour it all over your head tomorrow”

30
Q

What is the core executive?

A

People at the heart of government.

Complete day to day governing of Britain

Politics (10 decks)

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