2. The uk Government

2.1. The Prime Minister

Constitutionally the Head of State is the monarch who is a hereditary member of the Royal Family. However, the monarch has very few formal powers and stays above party politics.

So, in practice, the most important person in the British political system is the Prime Minister^*. The Prime Minister chooses the ministers who run Government departments and chairs the Cabinet – the collection of the most senior of those Ministers. The Prime Minister is, by tradition, First Lord of the Treasury and Minister for the Civil Service. The PM’s unique position of authority derives from majority support in the HC and from the power to appoint and dismiss ministers. By modern convention, the Prime Minister always sits in the House of Commons.

The PM presides over the Cabinet, is responsible for the allocation of functions among ministers and informs the Queen at regular meetings of the general business of the Government.

The Prime Minister’s other responsibilities include recommending a number of appointments to the Queen. These include:

1. Church of England archbishops, bishops and deans and other Church appointments;

2. senior judges, such as the Lord Chief Justice;

3. Privy Counselors;

4. Lord-Lieutenants.

2.2. Government Departments

Government departments are staffed by politically neutral civil servants and are headed by ministers. They are the main instruments for implementing government policy when Parliament has passed the necessary legislation, and for advising ministers.

The most important departments are called:

• The Treasury (in most countries, this would be called the Ministry of Finance; it is responsible for the raising of all taxes and the control of all government expenditure plus the general management of the economy; the Head of the Treasury is called the Chancellor of the Exchequer).

• The Home Office (in most countries, this would be called the Ministry of the Interior; it is responsible for criminal matters, policing, and immigration; the Head of the Home Office is called the Home Secretary).

• The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (in most countries, this would be called the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; it is responsible for all international relationships, especially the membership of the European Union; the Head of the Foreign Office is called the Foreign Secretary).

Many other UK Government Departments cover subjects such as education, health, transport, industry, and justice. However, in UK there are also departments for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

2.3. Government Ministers

All Government Departments are run by Ministers who are either Members of the House of Commons or Members of the House of Lords. There are three classes of Ministers:

• Secretary of State (this is usually the head of a Department).

• Minister of State (this is a middle-ranking minister).

• Under-Secretary of State (this is the most junior class of minister).

The Prime Minster and all the Secretaries of State together comprise an executive body of government called the Cabinet. The numbers often fluctuate between 21 and 24. The Cabinet meets usually once a week. Cabinet meetings are confidential and all members are bound by any decision that it takes in a practice called collective responsibility. An extensive system of Cabinet Committees considers matters either before they go to Cabinet or (more usually) instead of them going to Cabinet.

Although all Ministers are appointed by the Prime Minster and report to him, ultimately all Ministers are accountable to Parliament:

• About once a month, they have to face questions in the House of Commons about the work of the Department.

• Each government department has a special committee of the House of Commons which watches the work of that Department.

• Any government initiative or important statement concerning a Department must be the subject of an appearance in the House of Commons by a minister from that Department.