the Cabinet Flashcards
why does the cabinet have fewer resources available to them compared to the PM?
-members of the cabinet are in their position purely down to the decisions of the PM
-if they repeatedly disagree with an official approach, they could be demoted in a cabinet reshuffle
1st cabinet resource: M
- media
-cabinet ministers have their own links to the media and can leak info to the press e.g. Gavin Williamson was sacked for leaking details about a national security meeting to the press
2nd cabinet resource: RMD
-refusal to move departments
-can pressure the PM
-e.g. in 2018 Jeremy Hunt refused to move from the Health Department so Theresa May had to back down as he was very popular with the backbenchers
3rd cabinet resource: A
-autonomy
-most ministers run their department and a Pm probably won’t micromanage
4th cabinet resource: D
-debate
-cabinet meetings involve debate and discussion and PMs can use this to gauge opinions about issues
5th cabinet resource: R
-resignation
-this shows their disapproval of cabinet
-e.g. Robin Cook resigned from Blair’s cabinet due to the Iraq war
what is cabinet collective responsibility?
-the image of unity over cabinet decisions
-it doesn’t prevent disagreement behind closed doors, but the public face is one of dagreement
1st reason when a cabinet minister had to resign due to cabinet collective responsibility: AB
-accepting blame for an error in their department by a civil servant
-e.g. Gavin Williamson, after the exam’s fiasco of 2020, remained in post after blaming OFQUAL for the error so the head of OFQUAL resigned then Williamson had to as well
2nd reason when a cabinet minister had to resign due to cabinet collective responsibility: U
-Unwillingness to accept collective responsibility
-e.g. Robin Cook
3rd reason when a cabinet minister had to resign due to cabinet collective responsibility: I
-Inability to deliver a policy promise in their own department
-e.g. Sajid David resigned because he refused to sack all his aides as the Pm had asked him to
4th reason when a cabinet minister had to resign due to cabinet collective responsibility: PM
-personal misconduct
e.g. David Blunkett had to resign after he fast tracked a visa application for a nanny who was to look after the child he fathered with his ex-lover
5th reason when a cabinet minister had to resign due to cabinet collective responsibilty: PP
-political pressure
-e.g. Andrew Mitchell was forced to resign after ‘plebgate’ (altercation with a police officer outside Downing Street)
arguments FOR the executive being largely accountable to parliament
-ministers are subject to regular grilling at ministerial questions and PMQs
-all members of the executive have to follow the principles set out in the ministerial code, for example giving accurate and honest into to parliament
-ministers appear before select committees
-PM must retain the support of the parliamentary party, if this becomes weak the PMs position can become untenable
arguments AGAINST the executive being largely accountable to parliament
-answers in parliament often favour style over substance + ministers often avoid answering difficult questions
-principles of ministerial code can be open to interpretation
-select committees have relatively little power
-party loyalty is guaranteed
name a minister who breached collective cabinet responsibility but survived:
boris johnson - between 2016 and 2018, the then foreign secretary, wrote articles and participated in newspaper interviews in which he set out positions that were not government policy. But Theresa May, the prime minister at the time, decided not to discipline him for these transgressions.
