Cabinet Office written question – answered at on 13 August 2024.
Baroness Neville-Rolfe
Conservative
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the answer by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster on 25 July (HC Deb col 797), what consideration they give to past breaches on security and probity in government in subsequent government security vetting; whether, when re-appointing Damian McBride as a government special adviser, they reviewed his autobiography to assess whether there was any evidence within it of him breaching a relevant code of conduct; and what account they took of any such evidence when deciding to re-appoint him.
Baroness Twycross
Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip), Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
All special advisers are subject to the same checks as other civil servants in terms of security vetting, and are contractually obliged to meet the standards set out in both the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers, and the Civil Service Code’s values of Honesty and Integrity.
Yes5 people think so
No2 people think not
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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.
The Chancellor - also known as "Chancellor of the Exchequer" is responsible as a Minister for the treasury, and for the country's economy. For Example, the Chancellor set taxes and tax rates. The Chancellor is the only MP allowed to drink Alcohol in the House of Commons; s/he is permitted an alcoholic drink while delivering the budget.
