Understanding the UK Cabinet: Powers, Functions, and Structure
Cabinet deliberations are confidential (state secrets). It meets regularly, once or twice a week when the House of Commons is in session, and less often during parliamentary recess. It can also be urgently convened at the initiative of the Prime Minister. Much of the work is done by committees of the Cabinet, so much of its function is reduced to considering the reports and proposed recommendations for resolving issues. It is incumbent upon the resolution of matters of greater importance that require a level higher than ministerial decision-making, and the coordination of different departments. Its main functions are:
- The determination of the parameters of domestic and foreign policy: This is the most important aspect. We must highlight the great freedom of action of the Cabinet, the product of its strong parliamentary backing, party discipline, and leadership of the Prime Minister.
- The intervention in the legislative function through bills and delegated legislation.
- The financial power: The Cabinet dominates the State’s financial life. Although the budgets are approved by Parliament, a series of laws establish a system of monitoring and oversight of financial activity by the Cabinet.
- Control of Public Administration, with civil servants (Civil Service) playing a key role in different areas of government management.
- The appointment of relevant public officials, although some ecclesiastical appointments and judicial positions belong to the Crown, is decided in practice by the Cabinet.
The British party system allows an alternative political group that rules to assume the role of the Opposition (Her Majesty’s Opposition), composed of the Leader of the Opposition and the most important figures of the opposition. It’s an organized minority that adopts a similar structure to the Cabinet (hence the name Shadow Cabinet), including their own committees.
As there is no majority, it is unlikely to topple the Cabinet, so their objective is aimed, therefore, at the electorate undecided and not engaged in a filibuster in Parliament. Quite the opposite, since it is standard practice that in cases where the governing party is absent from members that enable the balance in a vote, the opposition tends to withdraw the number of deputies needed to counter. However, the Government takes the risk if a vote is in play on far-reaching policy. In fact, the Government (Ministry) or Ministry is a body composed of numerous ministries and ministers. There is therefore a deliberative body, and among its members, there is a hierarchical structure in which the members of the Cabinet are at the vertex. The Ministers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the Prime Minister, who in turn is conditional on the approval of his party. All must be members of Parliament, belonging equally to both Houses, but a minimum number of Lords is guaranteed besides the Lord Chancellor. Within the categories of Ministers, we must first note the figure of the Prime Minister, the centerpiece of the structure of government cabinet. Ministers are located at the head of a department, but there is a difference between those who are part of the Cabinet (Secretaries of State) and those outside it. We must also distinguish between those who are in charge of a Ministry or an Office, since the latter are of greater antiquity. Also part of the structure are the four advisers of the Crown performing their duties in England and Wales (Attorney General and Solicitor General), and those who practice in Scotland (Lord Advocate and Solicitor General). Within the Ministry are also ministers who are not members of the Cabinet and are not responsible for a ministerial department (Ministers of State), whose mission is to assist in special complicated departments. Another figure, parliamentary secretaries, are able to identify links to a Secretary of State and Anderson are the Parliamentary Secretary, and the parliamentary secretaries of any other Minister (Parliamentary Secretary).