Part of 1. 1. Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government – in the Senedd at 1:44 pm on 5 July 2017.
Adam Price
Plaid Cymru
1:44,
5 July 2017
I mentioned the mutual investment model, but I understand, from what he Cabinet Secretary said this morning, that he does not believe that the issue, identified as part of the decision over the Circuit of Wales, has any bearing on the classification regarding the mutual investment model. Could he say a little bit more about why he has come to that view, and, if so, was not a similar approach considered for the Circuit of Wales project? Can he also say if he’s aware, in this case, whether any of the following were contacted to give their advice or guidance in relation to the Circuit of Wales balance sheet classification issue? I’ll read them out slowly: her Majesty’s Treasury public expenditure classifications team; the Office for National Statistics’ economic statistics classifications team; the ONS economic statistics classification committee; and, finally, Eurostat’s committee on monetary, financial and balance of payments statistics.
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.
