Prime Minister and the Cabinet
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Prime Minister and the Cabinet Read and précis chapter 8 of ‘The Essentials of UK Politics’ by Andrew Heywood.
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Prime Minister and the Cabinet. Read and précis chapter 8 of ‘ The Essentials of UK Politics ’ by Andrew Heywood. Ground Rules. Raise your hand before you speak No food/drink Turn off mobiles. The role of the Prime Minister. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
Transcript of Prime Minister and the Cabinet
Prime Minister and the Cabinet
Read and précis chapter 8 of ‘The Essentials of UK Politics’ by Andrew Heywood.
Ground Rules
Raise your hand before you speak No food/drink Turn off mobiles
The role of the Prime Minister
What is the role of the Prime Minister? What functions do they have to, or have the right to perform?
In pairs, think of as many powers of the Prime Minister, both “official” and “unofficial”, and we will go through them together
Question: What does Primus inter pares mean? How does it relate to the Prime Minister?
The role of the Prime Minister
The Prime Minister is certainly powerful but what factors outside their control constrain the PM?
In pairs, think of as many examples as you can of what can constrain the PM’s power. Also think about an example of when this happened, eg: media support – Major didn’t have this when the Sun opted to back Blair in the ’97 election
The Prime Minister’s Office
The PM does not have his own department, but he has an “office” with sections dealing with policy, communications and strategy
The PM’s Office has grown in the last 20 years. Why do you think that is? What does it tell us?
PM Leadership Style
PMs all have different leadership styles, as they are all different people living in different times.
In pairs, prepare bullet point presentations on the styles of Thatcher, Major, Blair or Brown.
What was more important to their leadership style, their personality or the circumstances surrounding their premiership?
PM Leadership style
Compare the leadership styles of Gordon Brown and David Cameron’s.
What factors shape a PM’s leadership style?
The Cabinet
What is the cabinet? Who are important figures in the cabinet? There are regular cabinet meetings. These are
very busy people! Are all major policies decided in cabinet. Why should they meet so often?
Presentations
In pairs, prepare detailed presentations on either– The Cabinet Office and Cabinet Committees, how
they work and what they do, OR– Different styles of Cabinet Government, using terms
such as collective responsibility, core executive, kitchen cabinet
Produce as either PowerPoint or handouts so the rest of the class has a record of your presentation
Roleplay
See exercise for details
