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Politics A Level - UK Government > The Executive > Flashcards

The Executive Flashcards

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1
Q

Outline the powers of the Prime Minister given by convention?

A
  • Nominally (officially not in reality) chosen by monarch
  • By convention leader of HoC
  • Powers come from royal prerogative (convention over law)
  • PM head of executive branch of gov and chairperson of cabinet
  • Responsibilities range of government work and implications of royal choices
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2
Q

How is the Prime Minister’s office structured?

A 
• Permanent civil servants-  political advisors  
• 5 components 
- Private office
- Policy unit
- Political unit 
- Press office
- Strategic Communications Unit
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3
Q

How is the executive structured?

A

Prime Minister
Cabinet - 20 -23 members, each is a head of a government department. Some senior figures may also attend
Government department - composed of head, junior minister and potentially another level of admissions
Executive agencies

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4
Q

What job does the the Prime Minister within the structure of the executive?

A
  • Chairs cabinet
  • Appoints all members of cabinet, junior ministers and decides who sit in cabinet committees
  • Organises the structure of government - can create, abolish or merge departments
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5
Q

Who aids the cabinet in making their decisions regarding policy?

A

The Cabinet office, chaired by the UK’s most senior civil servant - the Cabinet Secretary. This is currently Sir Jeremy Haywood

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6
Q

Name some current cabinet ministers

A 
Prime Minister - Theresa May
Chancellor - Phillip Hammond
Secretary of Defence - Gavin Williamson
Health Secretary - Matt Hancock 
Home Secretary - Sajid Javid
Foreign Secretary - Jeremy Hunt
Education Secretary - Damien Hinds 
Work and Pensions Secretary - Ester McVey
Chief Whip - Julian Smith
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7
Q

Give some features of the cabinet

A
  • Chosen by the PM
  • Collectively make decisions on behalf of government
  • Drawn from either chamber
  • In 2017 there were 118 government ministers
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8
Q

What are executive agencies?

A

Semi-independant bodies that carry out some of the governments functions e.g. the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency is overseen by the Department of Transport

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9
Q

What is the main role of the executive

A
  • Decides how the country is run
  • Represent the UK abroad
  • Manages nation’s defence
  • Responsible for public services (NHS, welfare benefits, justice system)
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10
Q

What has devolution done in regards to the executives role?

A

It has transferred some roles (e.g education) to national devolved bodies in Scotland, Wales and Norther Ireland

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11
Q

What are the three main roles of the executive?

A
  • Proposing legislation
  • Proposing the budget
  • Making policy decisions
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12
Q

How does the executive purpose legislation?

A
  • Introduces new laws or amendments to old ones
  • New program of legislation to be passed is set out in the Queen’s speech
  • Legislation can be passed in emergencies
  • Pressure groups and professional bodies are also consulted before doing so
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13
Q

How does the executive propose the budget?

A
  • An annual statement is produced by the chancellor of the exchequer
  • Usually sent to the HOC for approval in March but went out in March in 2017
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14
Q

What happens in regards to a year’s financial budget if a new part is elected within that year?

A

The new government will introduce their own budget, e.g. George Osborne introduced his own budget in 2010 just 90 days after Labour had introduced theirs

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15
Q

What does ‘making policy decisions’ mean?

A

The government’s decision to give effect to its aims for the future direction of the country

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16
Q

Give examples of of policy decisions made by the coalition of 2012-2015

A
  • Streamlining the welfare system by introducing universal credit under the Welfare Reform Act
  • Introducing free school as part of the ‘big society’ aim
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17
Q

What are the three main powers of the executive?

A
  • Royal prerogative powers
  • Initiating legislation
  • Creation of secondary legislation
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18
Q

Name the 7 main prerogative powers that the executive exercises

A
  • Give out pardons
  • Declare war and authorise the use of the armed forces
  • Award honours
  • Sign treaties
  • Take action to maintain order in the case of an emergency
  • Grant and withdraw passports
  • Appoint minister and other senior office holders
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19
Q

Give an example for each of the prerogative powers being used

A
  • The pardoning of Alan Turing in 2013
  • Declaring war in the Falklands in 1982
  • Darcy Bussell awarded a damehood for serviced to dance
  • The Paris Agreement to help combat climate change in 2015
  • Deployment of police during the 2011 riots
  • Only been used 17 times
  • Appointment of Amber Rudd as Home Secretary by Theresa May in 2016
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20
Q

How have the royal prerogative powers been amended in past years?

A
  • The ability to declare war has been passed more towards parliament, ever since 2003 a vote has taken place in parliament whether military action is taken
  • The power to call an election has been removed by the 2011 Fixed Term Parliaments Acts - loopholes of 2/3 of ruling party supporting the call of election or a vote of no confidence remain
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21
Q

How does the executive initiate legislation?

A
  • The executive comes form the party with the majority in the HOC and thus can pass laws through the commons quite easily
  • They control all of parliamentary time for bill proposal part from 20 opposition days, 13 for Private members bills and a period for debates selected buy the Backbench Business Committee
  • Program assured under patronage system or the whip
22
Q

How can the executive strengthen the passage of legislation?

A
  • Allocation of time motion (the guillotine) : allows debate of certain classes to be limited - used by Cameron in 2011 on issue of constituency boundaries
  • Programming motion : allows for time spent on each stage of the bill to be determined
  • From 2002 bills can pass from one parliamentary session to the next without having to restart the bill all over again
23
Q

What is secondary legislation?

A

Laws made without having to pass a new act in parliament

24
Q

What gives the executive the power to write secondary legislation?

A

Statutory instruments : allow the government to modify or repeal existing laws as it wastes time to create a new bill each time a law needs amending

25
Q

Name some secondary legislation that has been created

A

2016 : abolishment of student maintenance grants, fracking in national parks

26
Q

Why is secondary legislation controversial?

A
  • Referred to as ‘Henry VIII” clause

* Seen to be used to avoid legislature scrutiny or the amendment in controversial

27
Q

Name the 7 principals of public life

A
  • Selfishness
  • Integrity
  • Objectivity
  • Accountability
  • Openness
  • Honesty
  • Leadership
28
Q

What is individual ministerial responsibility (IMR)?

A

A convention that is a serious personal or political mistake is made by a minster or the department they run that they resign. Parliament or the PM do not have the power to remove minsters but they can apply pressure to force resignation

29
Q

Give an example of an MP resigning due to acting selfishly

A

David Law, claimed parliamentary expenses on £40,000 for improvements to second home whilst renting out rooms in his parter’s properties (2010)

30
Q

Give an example of an MP resigning due to not being open

A

Liam Fox, using advisor Adam Werrity in his role as Defence Secretary after Werrity had not been authorised to work in such role

31
Q

Give an example of an MP resigning due to not being honest

A

Chris Huhne, charged with crime in which he lied about who was driving a car and passed told his wife to take the blame and penally points (2012)

32
Q

Give an example of an MP resigning due to poor leadership

A

Clare Short, resigned due to believing she had been decided into supporting the Gulf War whilst in office as International Development Secretary

33
Q

Which two MPs resigned in 2017 from Theresa May’s cabinet?

A

• Priti Patel: Minster for Internation Development and met with Israeli politicians unofficially whilst abroad
• Michael Foot: after claiming he had acted inappropriately towards a female news reporter and touched her leg
Boris Johnson: disagreed with Chequer’s Brexit Deal
Amber Rudd: Windrush scandal

34
Q

Why doe people believe that the principal of IMR has become less important

A
  • MPs are reappointed to cabinets despite being shown to having questionable qualities (Blunkett, Madleson)
  • Ministers can not resign, complete dependant on moral compass of the minister
  • Public or media pressure can have a great influence even if the minister has not done anything wrong (Ron Davies)
  • SPADS and the civil service have been getting greater blame for the mistakes of the government
35
Q

What are SPADS?

A

Special advisors

36
Q

What are the roles of special advisors?

A

They provide political advice to minister that are in the interest of the party and not the nation. they provide the political advice that the civil service is not supposed to give

37
Q

What demonstrates that the role of special advisors have increased?

A

The number of special advisors increased from 85 to 98 from 2012-2013

38
Q

Give examples of 2 minster and SPAD relationships

A
  • Jeremy Hunt and Adam Smith - Whilst Hunt was culture media and sport secretary he had to make a decision in regards to if Rupert Murdoch could take of BSkyB. Smith had been working to assure the deal. Smith was blamed by Hunt when questioned as part pf the Levison Inquiry
  • Theresa May and Nick Timothy and Fiona Hill - after the failed 2017 snap election Timothy and Hill were fired and blamed for giving May poor advice
39
Q

What are the three principals of the civil service?

A

• The are neutral
• They are permanent
• They are anonymous
The civil service is meant to advise and minsters decide

40
Q

How is the relationship between minsters and the civil service changing?

A

• Minster have made the civil service accountable/to blame for mistakes thus losing anonymity
• Senior civil servants are often called before select committees thus losing anonymity
• Governments want to be able to chose the civil service thus removing the permanence
• Neutrality is threatened by the civil servants fearing being blamed for mistakes or being fired for someone who gives the government the ‘advice they want’
There is now the the belief that civil servants persuade and minister decide

41
Q

What is a famous example of a civil servant having the blame shifted to them?

A

The Devreux Case : After the government was accused of mismanaging the implementation of universal credit in 2013 Work and Pensions secretary Iain Duncan Smith shifted the blame into Sir Robert Devreux and refused to attend the committee regarding the issue

42
Q

What is collective cabinet responsibility (CCR)?

A

The principal that members of the cabinet have to be prepared to back official government policy in public and that the entire cabinet is responsible for any policy that is introduced

43
Q

What examples are there of ministers resigning due to CCR?

A

• Robin Cook, the leader of the Commons in 2003, as he did not support the invasion of Iraq, the decision taken by Blair’s government
• Iain Duncan Smith, Works and Pension Secretary, resigning in 2016 over not supporting cuts to disability cuts (though many believe this was due to not wanting to take blame for cuts effects, personality clash with Cameron/Osbourne or being leave in regards to Brexit
Boris and Joe Johnson and the Checquers deal

44
Q

Why do people believe CCR is important?

A
  • Ensures the government has unity and stability

* Increases public morale towards government and policy

45
Q

What are arguments that CCR should be abolished?

A
  • MPs don’t appear to follow it very much any more through leaks to the media
  • Arguments are known about
  • Stifles political debate
  • Undermines the duty of MPs
  • Sees the loss of skilled minsters
  • Governments can still function without CCR demonstrated by the coalition government and referendum periods
  • Can be hard to restore after abolishment
46
Q

What happens to CCR during coalition governments?

A

It is suspended to allow the parties to ‘agree to differ’ on some issues such as in 2010 there were disagreements over alternate voting, nuclear power and the Trident nuclear submarines

47
Q

What is the role of the cabinet?

A
  • Makes government decisions that are considered official government policy
  • Determine government program and short term plans
  • Settel disputes between minster
  • May determine the reaction to a crisis
  • Meets once a week to discus actions
48
Q

What are the strengths of the cabinet?

A
  • Make decisions that can’t be made anywhere else
  • Deal with domestic emergencies (e.g. COBRA)
  • Legitimising decions made elsewhere
  • Can oust the PM
49
Q

What ar the weaknesses of the cabinet?

A
  • PM is not dominate, presidential style figure
  • Most decisions are made in committees
  • Mettings are short and stage managed
  • Large departments have become more independent
  • Much decision making has been moved to the Downing Street Organisation
50
Q

What are Norton’s four type of prime ministerial styles?

A

Innovators - achieve a programme and prepared to cajole party into supporting
Reformers - programme they implement is heavily influenced by party ideology
Egoists - seek power for the sake of having power
Balancers - aim to maintain stability in society, decrease tensions and avoid being divisive

51
Q

Give an example of each type of leader

A

Innovator - Callaghan kept extreme factions of party in check to carry out agenda, Thatcher and the ‘wets’
Reformer - Heath entering into the EEC
Egoist - May, has no policy just interim, no one likes her
Balancer - Cameron, not overly controversial

52
Q

Name the 4 aspects to Foley’s Thesis on qualities of a president

A

Spatial leader - distant from government
Cult of the Outsider - claim to be an outsider socially and politically
Public leadership - establishment of government agenda being THEIR agenda
The Personal factor - emphasis of their qualities

Politics A Level - UK Government (5 decks)

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