Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 2:12 pm on 9 July 2024.
Delyth Jewell
Plaid Cymru
2:12,
9 July 2024
The Tories are no longer in Government in Westminster, and hallelujah for that, but will the change Starmer has promised be more than an empty word for Wales? When you met Sir Keir yesterday, did you discuss fair funding for our nation? Did you demand the money we're owed from the Crown Estate and HS2? Because to govern is to choose, to choose what is prioritised. Now, we've heard already that some key figures in Sir Kier's new Cabinet have made clear that Wales will not be a priority for them, either in terms of devolving powers or giving us the cash that we are owed. So, First Minister, how will you stand up for Wales against those devosceptic instincts of the new regime? In whose service will you choose to govern?
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
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.
