Cabinet Handbook - The Department of the Prime Minister and ...

ANNEX H – CABINET COMMITTEES
1. In settling Cabinet arrangements, it is open to the Prime Minister of the day to adopt the
organisation and system he or she wishes, subject only to the provisions of the Ministers of State Act
1952. The Ministry, the Cabinet and Cabinet committees are all elements of the Cabinet system.
2. In general, submissions are considered first by the relevant Cabinet committee before being
brought forward to the Cabinet, particularly those submissions and memorandums that are of a highly
sensitive or technical nature. The resulting Cabinet committee minutes and their supporting submissions
are then usually listed for endorsement by the Cabinet. (Examples of exceptions include minutes of a
procedural kind such as requests by the Expenditure Review Committee of Cabinet (ERC) for further
submissions.)
3. Generally, the procedures and processes, including the submission and consultation processes
required by Cabinet committees mirror those of the Cabinet. The key difference is that, with the
exception of the Parliamentary Business Committee of Cabinet (PBC) and the National Security
Committee of Cabinet (NSC), Cabinet committee decisions are not final and must be endorsed or
considered by the Cabinet before they become operative. The PBC and NSC may, however, decide that a
particular matter within their authority should be referred to the Cabinet for endorsement.
4. Officials and advisers may attend Cabinet committee meetings, although the numbers and
seniority of attendees are restricted.
5. Where the Prime Minister does not chair a Cabinet committee, chairs and deputy chairs are
supported by the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.
Endorsement of Cabinet committee minutes
6. The Cabinet committee system is designed to ensure that outcomes are reached after thorough
discussion and on the basis of consensus. The Cabinet’s endorsement of Cabinet committee minutes is a
formal process not usually involving the re-opening of discussion. Cabinet committee chairs will advise
the Cabinet Secretary where Cabinet committee minutes require discussion so that they can be
identified for discussion on the Cabinet business list. Other ministers may also advise the Cabinet
Secretary that they wish to discuss a Cabinet committee minute in the Cabinet (noting that if the
request is made by a non-Cabinet minister then that minister would be co-opted to the Cabinet’s
discussion, subject to agreement by the Cabinet Secretary). The matter may then be raised for
discussion when the Cabinet committee minute is brought forward to the Cabinet for endorsement.
7. Changes of substance are not normally made in endorsing a Cabinet committee minute unless the
minister responsible seeks an amendment.
8. If a matter of substance is raised, the Cabinet may refer the matter back to the Cabinet
committee for further consideration. Similarly, if there is a Cabinet request for an additional submission,
or for a corrigendum to a document already before it, the matter may be returned to the appropriate
Cabinet committee for consideration before being considered by the Cabinet again.
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