Acabinet in governing is a group of people with the constitutional or legal task to rule a country or state, or advise a head of state, usually from theexecutive branch.[1] Their members are known asministers andsecretaries and they are often appointed by either heads of state or government.[2] Cabinets are typically the body responsible for the day-to-day management of the government and response to sudden events, whereas the legislative and judicial branches work in a measured pace, in sessions according to lengthy procedures.
The function of a cabinet varies: in some countries, it is a collegiate decision-making body withcollective responsibility, while in others it may function either as a purely advisory body or an assisting institution to a decision-makinghead of state orhead of government.
In some countries, particularly those that use aparliamentary system (e.g., theUnited Kingdom), the cabinet collectively decides the government's direction, especially in regard to legislation passed by theparliament. In countries with apresidential system, such as theUnited States, the cabinet does not function as a collective legislative influence; rather, their primary role is as an official advisory council to the head of government. In this way, thepresident obtains opinions and advice relating to forthcoming decisions.
Legally, under both types of system, theWestminster variant of a parliamentary system and the presidential system, the cabinet "advises" the head of state: the difference is that, in a parliamentary system, themonarch,viceroy, or ceremonial president will almost always follow this advice, whereas, in a presidential system, a president who is also head of government and political leader may depart from the cabinet's advice if they do not agree with it.
In practice, in nearly all parliamentary democracies that do not follow the Westminster system, and in three countries that do (Japan,Ireland, andIsrael), very often the cabinet does not "advise" the head of state as they play only a ceremonial role. Instead, it is usually the head of government (usually called "prime minister") who holds all means of power in their hands (e.g. inGermany,Sweden, etc.) and to whom the cabinet reports.
In both presidential and parliamentary systems, cabinet officials administer executive branches, government agencies, or departments. Cabinets are also important originators for legislation. Cabinets and ministers are usually in charge of the preparation of proposed legislation in the ministries before it is passed to theparliament. Thus, often the majority of new legislation actually originates from the cabinet and its ministries.
In most governments, members of the cabinet are given the title of "minister", and each holds a differentportfolio of government duties ("Minister of Foreign Affairs", "Minister of Health", etc.). In a few governments, as in the case ofMexico, thePhilippines, the UK, and the U.S., the title of "secretary" is also used for some cabinet members ("Secretary of Education", or "Secretary of State for X" in the UK or theNetherlands). In many countries (e.g. Germany,Luxembourg,France,Spain, etc.), a secretary (of State) is a cabinet member with an inferior rank to a minister. InFinland, a secretary of state is a career official that serves the minister.
While almost all countries have an institution that is recognisably a cabinet, the name of this institution varies. In many countries, (such asIreland,Sweden, andVietnam) the term "government" refers to the body of executive ministers; the broader organs of state having another name. Others, such asSpain,Poland, andCuba, refer to their cabinet as acouncil of ministers, or the similarcouncil of state. Some German-speaking areas use the term "senate" (such as theSenate of Berlin) for their cabinet, rather than the more common meaning of a legislative upper house. However, a great many countries simply call their top executive body the cabinet, includingIsrael,the United States,Venezuela, andSingapore, among others.
The term comes from the Italiangabinetto, which originated from the Latincapanna, which was used in the sixteenth century to denote a closet or small room. From it originated in the 1600s the English word cabinet or cabinett which was used to denote a small room, particularly in the houses of nobility or royalty. Around this time the use of cabinet associated with small councils arose both inEngland and other locations such as France and Italy. For example,Francis Bacon used the termCabanet Counselles in 1607.[3]
In presidential systems such as the United States, members of the cabinet are chosen by the president, and may also have to be confirmed by one or both of the houses of the legislature (in the case of the U.S., it is theSenate that confirms members with a simple majority vote).
Depending on the country, cabinet members must, must not, or may be members of parliament. The following are examples of this variance:
In most presidential systems, cabinet members cannot be sitting legislators at the same time. A legislator who is offered a cabinet position, wishes to accept it, and get confirmed for the position, must resign from their seat.
In the countries utilising the Westminster system, such as theUnited Kingdom orAustralia, cabinet ministers are traditionally appointed from among sitting members of the parliament. In the UK, it can be from either theHouse of Commons or theHouse of Lords.
In countries with a strict separation between the executive and legislative branches of government (e.g. Luxembourg, Sweden,Switzerland, andBelgium), cabinet membersmust not simultaneously be a member of parliament; appointed/nominated cabinet members are required to give up their seat in parliament. In some countries, the outgoing MP may be substituted with another MP that comes from the same party as the former without going through a special or by-election.
The intermediate case is where ministersmay be members of parliament, but are not required to be, as inFinland andSpain.
Some countries that adopt a presidential system also place restrictions on who is eligible for nomination to cabinet based on electoral outcomes. For instance in the Philippines, candidates who have lost in any election in the country may not be appointed to cabinet positions within one (1) year of that election.[4]
The candidate prime minister and/or the president selects the individual ministers to be proposed to the parliament, which may accept or reject the proposed cabinet composition. Unlike in a presidential system, the cabinet in a parliamentary system must not only be confirmed, but enjoy the continuing confidence of the parliament: a parliament can pass amotion of no confidence to remove a government or individual ministers. Often, but not necessarily, these votes are taken across party lines.
In some countries (e.g. the U.S.)attorneys general also sit in the cabinet, while in many others this is strictly prohibited, as the attorneys general are considered to be part of thejudicial branch of government. Instead, there is aMinister of Justice, separate from the attorney general. Furthermore, in Sweden, Finland, andEstonia, the cabinet includes aChancellor of Justice, a civil servant that acts as the legal counsel to the cabinet.
Inmulti-party systems, the formation of a government may require the support of multiple parties. Thus, acoalition government is formed. Continued cooperation between the participating political parties is necessary for the cabinet to retain the confidence of the parliament. For this, a government platform is negotiated, in order for the participating parties to toe the line and support their cabinet. However, this is not always successful: constituent parties of the coalition or members of parliament can still vote against the government, and the cabinet can break up from internal disagreement or be dismissed by a motion of no confidence.
The size of cabinets varies, although most contain around ten to twenty ministers. Researchers have found an inverse correlation between a country's level ofdevelopment and cabinet size: on average, the more developed a country is, the smaller is its cabinet.[5]
A council of advisers of a head of state has been a common feature of government throughout history and around the world. InAncient Egypt, priests assisted the pharaohs in administrative duties.[6] InSparta, theGerousia, or council of elders, normally sat with the two kings to deliberate on law or to judge cases.[7] TheMaurya Empire under the emperorAshoka was ruled by a royal council.[8] InKievan Rus', the prince was obliged to accept the advice and receive the approval of theduma, or council, which was composed ofboyars, or nobility. An inner circle of a few members of the duma formed a cabinet to attend and advise the prince constantly.[9] The ruins ofChichen Itza andMayapan in theMaya civilisation suggest that political authority was held by a supreme council of elite lords.[10] In theSonghai Empire, the central government was composed of the top office holders of the imperial council.[11] In theOyo Empire, theOyo Mesi, or royal council, were members of the aristocracy who constrained the power of theAlaafin, or king.[12] During theQing dynasty, the highest decision-making body was theDeliberative Council.[13]
In the United Kingdom and its colonies, cabinets began as smaller sub-groups of theEnglish Privy Council. The term comes from the name for arelatively small and private room used as a study or retreat. Phrases such as "cabinet counsel", meaning advice given in private to the monarch, occur from the late 16th century, and, given the non-standardised spelling of the day, it is often hard to distinguish whether "council" or "counsel" is meant.[14]
TheOxford English Dictionary credits Francis Bacon in hisEssays (1605) with the first use of "Cabinet council", where it is described as a foreign habit, of which he disapproves: "For which inconveniences, the doctrine of Italy, and practice of France, in some kings' times, hath introduced cabinet counsels; a remedy worse than the disease".[15]
Charles I began a formal "Cabinet Council" from his accession in 1625, as his Privy Council, or "private council", was evidently not private enough,[citation needed] and the first recorded use of "cabinet" by itself for such a body comes from 1644, and is again hostile and associates the term with dubious foreign practices.[14] The process has repeated itself in recent times, as leaders have felt the need to have aKitchen Cabinet or "sofa government".[16]
Under the Westminster system, members of the cabinet areMinisters of the Crown who arecollectively responsible for all government policy. All ministers, whether senior and in the cabinet or junior ministers, must publicly support the policy of the government, regardless of any private reservations. Although, in theory, all cabinet decisions are taken collectively by the cabinet, in practice many decisions are delegated to the various sub-committees of the cabinet, which report to the full cabinet on their findings and recommendations. As these recommendations have already been agreed upon by those in the cabinet who hold affected ministerial portfolios, the recommendations are usually agreed to by the full cabinet with little further discussion. The cabinet may also provide ideas on/if new laws were established, and what they include. Cabinet deliberations are secret and documents dealt with in cabinet are confidential. Most of the documentation associated with cabinet deliberations will only be publicly released a considerable period after the particular cabinet disbands, depending on provisions of a nation'sfreedom of information legislation.
In theory the prime minister or premier isfirst among equals. However, the prime minister is ultimately the person from whom the head of state will takeadvice (by constitutional convention) on the exercise ofexecutive power, which may include the powers to declare war, use nuclear weapons, and appoint cabinet members. This results in the situation where the cabinet isde facto appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the prime minister. Thus, the cabinet is often strongly subordinate to the prime minister as they can be replaced at any time, or can be moved ("demoted") to a different portfolio in acabinet reshuffle for "underperforming".
This position in relation to the executive power means that, in practice, any spreading of responsibility for the overall direction of the government has usually been done as a matter of preference by the prime minister – either because they are unpopular with theirbackbenchers, or because they believe that the cabinet should collectively decide things.
Ashadow cabinet consists of the leading members, orfrontbenchers, of anopposition party, who generally hold critic portfolios "shadowing" cabinet ministers, questioning their decisions and proposing policy alternatives. In some countries, the shadow ministers are referred to as spokespersons.
The Westminster cabinet system is the foundation of cabinets as they are known at the federal and provincial (or state) jurisdictions ofAustralia,Canada,India,Pakistan,South Africa, and otherCommonwealth countries whose parliamentary model is closely based on that of the United Kingdom.
Under the doctrine ofseparation of powers in the United States, a cabinet under a presidential system of government is part of the executive branch. In addition to administering their respective segments of the executive branch, cabinet members are responsible for advising the head of government on areas within their purview.
They are appointed by and serve at the pleasure of the head of government and are therefore strongly subordinate to the president as they can be replaced at any time. Normally, since they are appointed by the president, they are members of the same political party, but the executive is free to select anyone, including opposition party members, subject to theadvice and consent of the Senate.
Normally, the legislature or a segment thereof must confirm the appointment of a cabinet member; this is but one of the manychecks and balances built into a presidential system. The legislature may also remove a cabinet member through a usually difficultimpeachment process.
In the cabinet, members do not serve to influence legislative policy to the degree found in a Westminster system; however, each member wields significant influence in matters relating to theirexecutive department. Since the administration ofFranklin D. Roosevelt, thePresident of the United States has acted most often through his ownexecutive office or theNational Security Council rather than through the cabinet as was the case in earlier administrations.
Although the term "Secretary" is usually used to name the most senior official of a government department, some departments have different titles to name such officials. For instance, theDepartment of Justice uses the term "Attorney General" instead of "Justice Secretary", but theAttorney General is nonetheless a cabinet-level position.
Following the federal government's model, state executive branches are also organised into executive departments headed by cabinet secretaries. Thegovernment of California calls these departments "agencies" or informally "superagencies", while thegovernment of Kentucky styles them as "cabinets".
^The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition, atWordnik.com
^Creighton, Mandell; Winsor, Justin; Gardiner, Samuel Rawson; Poole, Reginald Lane; Edwards, Sir John Goronwy (1923).The English Historical Review. Oxford University Press.
^Sharer, Robert J.; Traxler, Loa P. (2006).The Ancient Maya (6th ed.). Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. p. 580.ISBN0-8047-4816-0. Retrieved25 November 2020.
^Rawski (2011)."2. The Qing empire during the Qianlong reign". In Millward, James A.; Dunnell, Ruth W.; Elliott, Mark C.; Forêt, Philippe (eds.).New Qing Imperial History: The making of Inner Asian empire at Qing Chengde. New York, NY: RoutledgeCurzon.ISBN978-0-415-51118-6. Retrieved25 November 2020.
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