771373
Ministerial Responsibility
- Conventional
- Replaced old legal remedy of impreachment
- Ministers responsibile for themselves and their
department to rest of the legislature
- Sanctions: Loss of support in parliament and public
- Possible resignation
- Damage to the government?
- Possible resignation
- Political because of doctrine of
separation of powers
- Ministers
- Chosen by PM and deputy PM
- Conventions
- Member of HoL or HoC
- Member of governing party
- PM decides number
(usually 22) and functions
- Member of HoL or HoC
- Chosen by PM and deputy PM
- Cabinet
- Meet once a week
- meet in unofficial committees - e.g.
Kitchen cabinet and sofa government
- Must abide by
Ministerial Code 2010
- United in public - All
ministers bound by
decisions
- Meet once a week
- Collective Responsibility
- Confidentiality
- AG v Jonathan Cape 1976
- Courts recognise existence of
conventions but because of parliamentary
privilege it is not legally binding because
no court can enforce them
- Courts recognise existence of
conventions but because of parliamentary
privilege it is not legally binding because
no court can enforce them
- 30 year rule
- Freedom of Information Act 2000
- Can request to see
government information
- R (Evans) v AG 2013
- AG can stop request
- AG can stop request
- Can request to see
government information
- AG v Jonathan Cape 1976
- Unanimity
- Can lead to resignation - e.g. Robin
Cook and Clare Short 2003
- DIssent by leaking - Westland
Helicopters Affair 1985-86
- Can lead to resignation - e.g. Robin
Cook and Clare Short 2003
- Votes of confidence
- Government only remain in power if they retain
support of their party - Labour 1979
- PM must retain support of their
party - Thatcher 1990 and Blair
2007
- Government only remain in power if they retain
support of their party - Labour 1979
- Suspension of collective responsibility
- MP can vote freely
- European Economic Community referendum 1975
- The National Government 1932
- MP can vote freely
- Confidentiality
- Individual Responsibility
- Legal responsbility
- Can be judicially reviewed for
departments actions
- M v Home Office 1994
- Carltopna v Cmmr of Works 1943
- M v Home Office 1994
- Not above the law
- Can be judicially reviewed for
departments actions
- Political responsibility
- Accountable to parliament
- PM can ask minister to step down as per
Ministerial Code 2010 para 1.5.
- Accountable to parliament
- Should take responsibility for department
- Crichel Down Affair 1954 (took
family farm for military purposes)
- Prisons in 1995
- Resignation rare - more likely to be
reshuffled e.g. Chloe Smith 2013
- Crichel Down Affair 1954 (took
family farm for military purposes)
- Financial impropriety
- Parliamentary privilege rules
- Not allowed conflict between public duties and private
interests as per Ministerial Code 2010 para 1.2f and g
- Liam fox 2011
- Must not accept gifts which could put
them under an improper obligation
- Liam fox 2011
- Resignation common
- Peter Mandelson 1998, David Laws 2010.
- Peter Mandelson 1998, David Laws 2010.
- Parliamentary privilege rules
- Lying to the HoC
- Always resignation
- Government can only be
accountable to the
commons if it tells the truth
- Iraq war
- Always resignation
- Legal responsbility
Want to create your own Mind Maps for free with GoConqr? Learn more.