Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Public Building and Works – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 9 November 1964.
Mr Charles Pannell
, Leeds West
12:00,
9 November 1964
No, Sir; I do not find that at all. I can only tell the hon. Gentleman that I have been concerned with the work of this Department for 18 hours a day since I have had the job and could not have spared any time for the Cabinet.
The cabinet is the group of twenty or so (and no more than 22) senior government ministers who are responsible for running the departments of state and deciding government policy.
It is chaired by the prime minister.
The cabinet is bound by collective responsibility, which means that all its members must abide by and defend the decisions it takes, despite any private doubts that they might have.
Cabinet ministers are appointed by the prime minister and chosen from MPs or peers of the governing party.
However, during periods of national emergency, or when no single party gains a large enough majority to govern alone, coalition governments have been formed with cabinets containing members from more than one political party.
War cabinets have sometimes been formed with a much smaller membership than the full cabinet.
From time to time the prime minister will reorganise the cabinet in order to bring in new members, or to move existing members around. This reorganisation is known as a cabinet re-shuffle.
The cabinet normally meets once a week in the cabinet room at Downing Street.
