Cabinet Manual
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Summary of Contents
Contents
Foreword
Preface
Introduction
1. Governor-General & Executive Council
2. Ministers of the Crown: Appointment & Role
3. Ministers of the Crown & the State Sector
4. Ministers & the Law
5. Cabinet Decision Making
6. Elections, Transitions, & Government Formation
7. The Executive, Legislation, & the House
8. Official Information
Appendices
Index
PDF file (1.9MB)
Contents
Foreword
Preface
On the Constitution of New Zealand: An Introduction to the Foundations of the Current Form of Government
1. GOVERNOR-GENERAL AND EXECUTIVE COUNCIL
Introduction
Governor-General
Office of Governor-General
Formal powers and functions of office
Royal prerogative
International role
Exercising the powers and functions of office
Administrator of the Government
Executive Council
Powers
Membership of Executive Council
Resignations and dismissals of Executive Councillors
Clerk of the Executive Council
Meetings of Executive Council
Items for consideration by Executive Council
Preparing items for Executive Council
Meetings, quorum, and attendance
Confidentiality
Gazetting and entry into force
Announcement
New Zealand Royal Honours System
General
Administration
Nominations
New Zealand Royal Honours for non-New Zealand citizens
“The Honourable”
Acceptance of foreign honours by New Zealand citizens
Heraldry
2. MINISTERS OF THE CROWN: APPOINTMENT AND ROLE
Introduction
Prime Minister
Appointment
Role
Deputy Prime Minister
Ministers
Appointment
Resignation and dismissal
Legal power for Ministers to act for other Ministers
Role and powers of Ministers
Financial responsibility of Ministers
Cabinet Ministers, Ministers outside Cabinet, and Ministers of State
Ministerial portfolios
Associate Ministers
Acting Ministers
Duty Ministers
Parliamentary Under-Secretaries
Parliamentary Private Secretaries
Conduct, public duty, and personal interests
General
Conduct of Ministers
Register of Pecuniary Interests of Members of Parliament
Ministers' interests
Identifying conflicts of interest
Types of conflicts of interest
Pecuniary interests
Interests of family, whānau, and close associates
Association
Managing conflicts of interest
Conflicts of interest in the House
Constituency interests
Gifts
General
Gifts from foreign governments
Gifts from non-government or commercial organisations
Cultural gifts
Political party donations
Fees, endorsements, and outside activities
Product endorsement
Fees and other payments
Business and professional activities
Government advertising guidelines
Ministerial travel
Overseas travel
Purpose of travel
Approval of travel
Travel costs
Accompanying family members, staff, and officials
Reporting on overseas travel
Personal travel overseas
Visits by Ministers from other countries
Travel within New Zealand
3. MINISTERS OF THE CROWN AND THE STATE SECTOR
Introduction
The public service, the state services, and the state sector
Public service
State services
State sector
Ministers and the public service
Roles and responsibilities
Ministers’ relationships with chief executives
Accountability documents
Briefing for incoming Ministers
Ministers and officials
Individual ministerial responsibility for departmental actions
Appointment of chief executives
Chief executives as employers
Ministers and Crown entities
General
Role of Ministers
Whole of government directions under the Crown Entities Act 2004
Role of Crown entity boards
Role of monitoring departments
Ministers and companies in the state sector
General principles
State-owned enterprises
Integrity and conduct across the state sector
Principles of public service
Processes for upholding the principles of public service
Public comment on government policy
Public servants’ contact with political parties
Select committees
Caucus and caucus committees
Supporting consultation and negotiation between political parties
Private communications with Ministers and members of Parliament
4. MINISTERS AND THE LAW
Introduction
Attorney-General
General
Role of Attorney-General
Law officer role
Legal proceedings involving the Crown
Link between the judiciary and the government
Responsibility for agencies
Attorney-General’s functions and section 7 of the Constitution Act 1986
Comment by Ministers on judicial decisions
Crown legal business
Litigation involving Ministers
Judicial review
Appearance in court by Ministers to give evidence and production or discovery of documents
Service of court documents
Indemnity of Minister as a defendant
Proceedings brought against Ministers
Proceedings concerning the exercise of ministerial powers
Proceedings against a Minister personally
Preliminary steps
Cabinet consideration
Procedure where the Crown undertakes the defence
Procedure where private counsel is retained
Payment of costs or damages awarded
Receipt of costs or damages awarded
Indemnity of Minister as plaintiff
Legal advice and legal professional privilege
General
Legal professional privilege
Guidelines for the presentation of legal advice
Waiver of legal privilege
Release of legal advice
Public inquiries
General
Statutory commissions of inquiry
Commissions of inquiry
Royal commissions of inquiry
Powers and privileges of statutory commissions of inquiry
Establishing a statutory commission of inquiry
Subject of inquiry
Purpose of inquiry
Terms of reference
Appointment of inquirer or commissioner
Budget and time frame
Ministerial inquiries
Standing bodies with inquiry powers
Statutory bodies
Select committee inquiries
5. CABINET DECISION MAKING
Introduction
Cabinet
Cabinet committees
Principles of Cabinet decision making
Items for consideration by Cabinet
Consultation
Portfolio consultation
Political consultation
Departmental consultation
Statutory consultation processes
Confidentiality
Collective responsibility
Collective responsibility and Ministers
Collective decision making and government agencies
Exercise of Ministers’ statutory powers and functions in the collective Cabinet context
Statutory decisions
Statutory decisions and Executive Council
Cabinet and Cabinet committee procedures
Preparing and submitting Cabinet papers
Deadlines and late papers
Amendments to papers
Withdrawal of papers
Agendas
Oral items
Minutes
Meetings
Chairs of meetings
Attendance of Ministers
Quorum
Attendance of officials and visiting dignitaries at Cabinet
Attendance of officials at Cabinet committee meetings
Financial matters and Cabinet
Government spending
The Budget cycle
The Crown's financial veto
Regulatory impact analysis
Constitutional issues and Cabinet
International treaties and Cabinet
Cabinet and the Resource Management Act 1991
Referral to Cabinet of decisions taken outside the Cabinet process
Secretary of the Cabinet and the Cabinet Office
6. ELECTIONS, TRANSITIONS, AND GOVERNMENT FORMATION
Introduction
The electoral cycle
General
Cabinet and Ministers’ decision making before and after an election
Pre-election period
Transitions following an election
General
Outcome of elections
Caretaker convention
General
Principles of the caretaker convention
Two arms of the convention
Unclear outcome
Clear outcome
Decision-making process under the caretaker convention
Departments and other state sector agencies
Day-to-day administration
Departments
Crown entities, state-owned enterprises, and other state sector agencies
Ministerial decisions
Coordination and the Prime Minister's role
Guidance on decisions about expenditure and the Official Information Act 1982
Government formation
General
Principles and processes of government formation
Outgoing Ministers
Appointment of a new government
Mid-term transitions
General
Mid-term change of Prime Minister with no change of government
Mid-term change of government
Early election
Provision of information by the state sector during transitions
7. THE EXECUTIVE, LEGISLATION, AND THE HOUSE
Introduction
Speech from the Throne
Prime Minister’s statement
Government legislation programme
Purpose of the legislation programme
Confidentiality
Development of the legislation programme
Monitoring the legislation programme
Legislation Coordinator
Law Commission work programme
Development and approval of bills
From policy to enactment
Process for developing bills
Assessing the need for legislation
Consultation
Effective and appropriate consultation
Ministerial colleagues
Caucus(es)
Political consultation
Inter-agency consultation
Ministry of Justice
Regulatory Impact Analysis Team
Portfolios and the administration of legislation
Legislation Design Committee
Legislation Advisory Committee
Offices of Parliament
Organisations outside the state services
Consultation time frames and processes
Drafting legislation
Role of the drafter
Drafting instructions
Consideration by Cabinet Legislation Committee and Cabinet
Reference to caucus(es)
Consultation with non-government parliamentary parties
Compliance with legal principles and obligations
Omnibus bills
Policy changes to a bill after introduction
Non-government legislative proposals
Regulations
Authority to make regulations
Scrutiny of regulations
Planning for the development of regulations
Process for developing regulations to be made by Order in Council
The 28-day rule
Publicising new regulations
Ministers and select committees
General
Consideration of bills
Submissions on bills by departments
Government responses to reports of select committees
Examination of international treaties by the House
General
National interest analysis
Select committee consideration
Related legislation
Crown’s financial veto
Citizens-initiated referenda
8. OFFICIAL INFORMATION
Introduction
Information held by government
Protection and classification of official information
Proactive release of Cabinet material
Improper release or use of official information
Unauthorised release of official information
Exploitation of official information for private gain
Commercially sensitive information
Official Information Act 1982
Purpose of the Act
Key provisions
What is official information?
Complying with the Official Information Act 1982
Informal advice on particular issues
Requests for Cabinet material under the Official Information Act 1982
Security classifications and endorsements and the Official Information Act 1982
Consultation on Official Information Act requests
Undertaking consultation
Consultation by Ministers
Consultation by departments
Coordinating Official Information Act requests
Charging for official information
Review of decisions to withhold official information
Conduct of the review
Ombudsman's recommendation
Privacy Act 1993
Purpose of the Act
Compliance
Key provisions
Ministerial access to and use of personal information
Ombudsmen Act 1975
Providing information to select committees
Production or discovery of official documents in legal proceedings
Cabinet and ministerial records – overview
Convention on access to Cabinet records of a previous administration
General
Incumbent Ministers
Former Ministers
Documents covered by the convention
Incumbent Ministers or departments releasing documents of a previous opposition administration
Former Ministers' access to Cabinet records dating from their time in office
Ministerial records
General
Cabinet and Cabinet committee records
Disposal or storage
Access by former Ministers
Ministerial papers and files
Disposal or storage
Access by former Ministers
Disposal or storage
Access by former Ministers
Departmental papers and files
Correspondence with constituents
Private or personal papers
Access to archived ministerial records
General
Setting conditions for public access to ministerial records
Assessing requests for public access to ministerial records
Records deposited by current Ministers
Records deposited by former Ministers
Disclosure and use of official information by former Ministers
Appendices
Appendix A: Letters Patent Constituting the Office of Governor-General of New Zealand 1983
Appendix B: Guidelines for Government Advertising
Appendix C: Cabinet Directions for the Conduct of Crown Legal Business 1993
