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Cabinet committees

What are cabinet committees?

Cabinet committees are groups of ministers that can “take collective decisions that are binding across government”.[1] They are partly designed to reduce the burden on the full cabinet by allowing smaller groups of ministers to take decisions on specific policy areas. These committees have been around in some form since the early 20th century.

The government can also create other types of ministerial committees. In June 2015, David Cameron introduced implementation taskforces, designed “to monitor and drive delivery of the government’s most important cross-cutting priorities”[2], although these were discontinued when Boris Johnson became prime minister in July 2019.

In March 2020, Boris Johnson announced the creation of four new ‘implementation committees’[3] in response to the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. These four committees focused on healthcare, the general public sector, economic and business, and international response. The four committees were chaired by Health Secretary Matt Hancock, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Michael Gove, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab respectively. Each committee chair fed into a daily ‘C-19 meeting’ of the prime minister, key ministers and senior officials, to discuss Covid-19. These ‘implementation committees’ were replaced by two new Covid-19 related cabinet committees in June 2020 – ‘COVID-19 Strategy’ and ‘COVID-19 Operations’.

On 13 May 2020, the Cabinet Office also announced the creation of five new ‘roadmap taskforces’[4] – committees intended to help guide certain sectors of the UK economy out of the Covid-19 induced lockdown. These new ministerial taskforces will each focus on:

Pubs and restaurants (led by BEIS). Non-essential retail, including salons (led by BEIS). Recreation and leisure, including tourism, culture and heritage, entertainment and sport (led by DCMS). Places of worship (led by MHCLG). International aviation (led by DfT).

Membership of these taskforces will be decided by the relevant secretary of state. Although some have started to announce lists of members, for example the recreation and leisure roadmap taskforce led by DCMS[5], exact membership for most remains unclear; it is likely they will include ministers, government officials, the Chief Scientific Adviser, representatives from Public Health England and the Health and Safety Executive, as well as trade union representatives, devolved administration representatives and other relevant industry-specific experts.[6]

The government can also convene inter-ministerial groups. These cannot take binding decisions but can support policy development and decision-making where collective cabinet agreement is not required. Government does not publish anything on these – we had to use a Freedom of Information request to get details.

Cabinet committees should not be confused with select committees, which are parliamentary bodies that scrutinise what government does.

What subjects do they cover?

Prime ministers can create, abolish or continue cabinet committees as they want. They also choose the remit and membership of the committees.

1 Cabinet committee existence (Updated: 01 Jul 2020) [2] [3]

[4]

Some committees have existed in some form for a while: for example, the Parliamentary Business and Legislation Committee has existed since 2010 to “consider issues relating to the government’s parliamentary business and implementation of its legislative programme”. It is relatively similar to [7] the Legislation Committee [5] which existed under Gordon Brown.

Others reflect prime ministerial priorities or political situations. David Cameron formalised the National Security Council as a cabinet committee in 2010, and in 2015 he abolished the Coalition Committee and the Banking Reform Committee [6], and introduced a new committee on Europe.

Similarly, Theresa May’s creation of numerous Brexit-related committees was a response to the referendum result, although her reasons for abolishing the committee on Health and Social Care in 2016 and of the Cyber-security Sub-committee in 2017 are less understandable given the public attention on and political challenges in those areas. 2 In October 2019, Prime Minister Boris Johnson created the Climate Change Committee. In the months prior, the government committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050, and in November 2020, the UK will host COP26, a UN conference on climate change [7].

Number of cabinet committees, by type of body (Updated: 01 Jul 2020) [9] [10]

[11]

Since 2010, the combined number of committees, sub-committees, and implementation taskforces peaked at 31 in April 2016.

When Boris Johnson became prime minister in July 2019, the government cut the sub-committees and implementation taskforces altogether, reducing the total number of committees to just six. This considerably slimmed-down system of committees appears to reflect the belief, held by the prime minister’s chief adviser, Dominic Cummings, that the cabinet is too big for making decisions. Cummings has said: “The idea of a cabinet of over 30 people is a complete farce; it should be maximum of probably six or seven people.” In the following months, the number of committees rose slightly, following the creation of a climate change committee, as well as several ‘implementation committees’ and ‘roadmap taskforces’ intended to build into the government response to the coronavirus crisis.

In June 2020, Boris Johnson undertook a comprehensive overhaul of existing committees, and introduced several new ones. The government took a new approach, introducing separate committees for ‘strategy’ and ‘operations’ in numerous areas where there was previously only one central committee. For example, the Climate Change Committee has been replaced by the ‘Climate Action Strategy’ and ‘Climate Action Implementation’ committees. This follows the perceived success of the ‘EU Exit Strategy’ and ‘EU Exit Operations’ committees in planning for a no-deal Brexit [12] in 2019. The new ‘COVID- 19 strategy’ and ‘COVID-19 Operations’ committees clearly mimic the Brexit committees.

A new ‘National Space Council’ was also introduced in June 2020, to "consider issues concerning prosperity, diplomacy and national security in, through [8] and from Space, as part of coordinating overall government policy". [5]

Who sits on cabinet committees? [13]

Ministers [14] – mainly at cabinet level – but a number of more junior ministers are also committee members. Membership is at the prime minister’s discretion, so it may reflect individual ministers’ relationship with the prime minister as much as the policy areas they are responsible for.

3 Membership of cabinet committees (Updated: 01 Jul 2020) [16] [17]

[18]

The chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster, Michael Gove, and the chancellor of the excherquer, Rishi Sunak, sit on the most cabinet committees – the former sits on 10, the latter on 13. The prime minister chairs all seven committees upon which he sits, with responsibility for chairing the EU Exit Operations, COVID-19 Operations and Union Policy implementation committees delegated to chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster Michael Gove.

Committees relating to economic affairs (such as the Economic Operations Committee) are chaired by chancellor of the exchequer Rishi Sunak. Leader of the House of Commons Jacob Rees Mogg chairs the Parliamentary Business and Legislation Committee, and Business Secretary Alok Sharma chairs the Climate Action Implementation Committee.

How do we know about them? [19]

[9] [5] The government publishes a list [20] after any changes to the number of committees or their membership. But there is often a delay between

4 membership changing and the list being published. For example, Theresa May became prime minister in July 2016 but details were not published [21] until October, after a freedom of information request from the IfG [22] and long after the committees had started meeting (the October 2018 list was similarly only published after we made an FoI request). Encouragingly, the Cabinet Office published the January 2018 quickly and without prompting, suggesting an increasing commitment to transparency around cabinet committees.

The most recent list of cabinet committees and their membership was published on 29 June 2020. This was eight months after the creation of the climate change cabinet committee (in October 2019), by which time it had been abolished and replaced with two new ‘climate action’ committees.

[10] [5] It is difficult to find older lists of cabinet committees. Only the current membership is available in a PDF on GOV.UK; even the page history [5]has missed a few updates we know exist. Some are accessible using a search engine like the Internet Archive: Wayback Machine[11] [5], or (potentially) the UK government web archive.[12] [5] Some, though not all, have also been presented to parliament as written ministerial statements and so can be found in the deposited papers library.[13] [5] This all means that the lists are not readily accessible – and some simply don’t exist online.

Does the government actually use cabinet committees? [23]

It depends on the prime minister – and other ministers. Cabinet committees can be efficient and operative parts of the constitution or merely dignified and decorative.

Although Tony Blair created large numbers of cabinet committees and sub-committees, one former cabinet secretary said that “Blair’s style of government didn’t fit easily with the cabinet committee system… [his] preference was for ad hoc meetings and other ways of managing the government.”

Cabinet committees took on additional importance under the coalition government. Oliver Letwin [24] said they helped "ensure that the government as a whole would abide by and enforce those rules” that underpinned the coalition, like its programme for government.

George Osborne, though, “didn’t really believe in cabinet committees” according to Vince Cable [25] and so the economic ones rarely met.

When the conservative government was elected in 2015, David Cameron introduced ‘implementation taskforces’ alongside cabinet committees. Oliver Letwin [24] told us this was because, while cabinet committees could be “great for resolving policy differences”, they were not so great at getting into the “nitty gritty detail” about what was happening on the ground with particular policies.

Letwin [24] told us that at the end of 2016 Theresa May had been "revivifying cabinet committees as places for discussion". By March 2017, she chaired every committee that she attended, indicating the extent of her control. The 2017 election undermined her power, and resulting political compromise was reflected by delegation to David Lidington, who chaired more committees than the prime minister in 2018. In a later release, May once again chaired the most committees with 10 to Lidington’s nine.

What does the gender balance in cabinet committees look like? [26]

As with other areas of government and politics, women tend to be underrepresented in cabinet committees.

Gender balance on cabinet committees, over time (Updated: 01 Jul 2020) [28] [29]

[30]

In June 2020, women held 20% of cabinet committee places, down from a high of 30% in March 2017. This is the lowest proportion since June 2015.

5 Gender balance on cabinet committees (Updated: 01 Jul 2020) [32] [33]

[34]

The gender balance of each committee differs – of the current committees, the EU Exit Strategy Committee has the highest proportion of women, at three out of seven members.

As of June 2020, six of the 15 central cabinet committees (and one sub-committee) do not formally have any female members, though several do state that "other Cabinet ministers will be invited to attend according to the agenda", implying some women may be able to be at the table in particular meetings. Membership of the ‘roadmap taskforces’ is unknown.

All of the chairs of the fourteen cabinet committees (and one sub-committee) are male, as of June 2020.

What do ministers think about cabinet committees? [35]

Our Ministers Reflect [36] project includes several interviews that discuss cabinet committees, so clearly they play a prominent role in government.

Labour

John Healey [37] Lord Hunt [38] Kitty Ussher [39] David Hanson [40] Jim Knight [41] Alistair Darling [42]

Conservative

Oliver Letwin [24] David Willetts [43] Jonathan Djanogly [44] Ed Vaizey [45] Lord Green [46]

Liberal Democrats

Vince Cable [25] Steve Webb [47] Lynne Featherstone [48] Lord McNally [49]

What are inter-ministerial groups? [50]

Inter-ministerial groups (IMGs) are more flexible groups that bring together ministers to ‘support the collective policy development process, including feeding into a relevant cabinet committee, and support decision-making by ministers within departments where collective agreement is not required’. Although not binding on cabinet, their existence is approved by the prime minister.

The government does not publish details about IMGs – we obtained information via a Freedom of Information request [51] (following an initial refusal [52] and then a delay [53]). All our information on inter-ministerial groups is only correct as of our last Freedom of Information request in August 2018.

What groups are there and who sits on them? [54]

6 Inter-ministerial group existence (Updated: 18 Mar 2020) [56] [57]

[58]

As of August 2018, there were 15 IMGs. Two of these – on EU Exit and Borders – dealt with Brexit-related issues. The EU Exit Inter-Ministerial Group operated ‘like a Dragon’s Den for Brexit no deal’ [59], with ministers from DExEU, the Cabinet Office, and the Treasury grilling ministers from other departments on their 'no deal' planning.

Departments represented as inter-ministerial groups (Updated: 18 Mar 2020) [61] [62]

[63]

Ministers from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government were core attendees of more IMGs than any other department (12), followed by Home Office, the Department of Health and Social Care, Treasury (all 11), BEIS and DCMS (both 10).

The home secretary chaired [64] more groups than any other – six. These were the core set of departments attending each committee – according to the Cabinet Office, ‘it is not uncommon for ministers from departments not listed to be invited to attend’.

John Penrose MP was previously the only non-minister attending an IMG. In November 2016, he was made a minister of state to Northern Ireland, but he continues to co-chair the anti-corruption group in his role as prime minister’s anti-corruption champion.

1. Cabinet Office, List of Cabinet Committees, GOV.UK, 16 September 2010, retrieved on 18 March 2020, www.gov.uk/government/publications/the- cabinet-committees-system-and-list-of-cabinet-committees [20] 2. Cabinet Office, Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street, and The Rt Hon Oliver Letwin, Cabinet Committees and Implementation Taskforces membership list, GOV.UK, 3 June 2015, retrieved on 18 March 2020, www.gov.uk/government/speeches/cabinet-committees-and-implementation- 7 taskforces-membership-list [65] 3. Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street, Cabinet Office, Department of Health and Social Care, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, HM Treasury, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, and The Rt Hon Boris Johnson MP, New government structures to coordinate response to coronavirus, GOV.UK, 17 March 2020, retrieved on 18 March 2020, www.gov.uk/government/news/new-government-structures-to- coordinate-response-to-coronavirus [66] 4. Cabinet Office, Government announces roadmap taskforces, GOV.UK, 13 May 2020, www.gov.uk/government/news/government-announces- roadmap-taskforces [67] 5. Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and The Rt Hon Oliver Dowden CBE MP, Culture Secretary announces Cultural Renewal Taskforce, GOV.UK, press release, 20 May 2020, www.gov.uk/government/news/culture-secretary-announces-cultural-renewal-taskforce [68] 6. Cabinet Office, Guidance: COVID-19 roadmap taskforces, GOV.UK, 15 May 2020, www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-roadmap- taskforces/covid-19-roadmap-taskforces [69] 7. Cabinet Office, Ministerial Committee on Legislation, 3 November 2008, retrieved on 18 March 2020, http://web.archive.org/web/20081120051054/http:/www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/secretariats/committees/l.aspx [70] 8. Cabinet Office, List of Cabinet Committees, GOV.UK, 16 September 2010, retrieved on 18 March 2020, www.gov.uk/government/publications/the- cabinet-committees-system-and-list-of-cabinet-committees [20] 9. Ibid. 10. Cabinet Office, List of Cabinet Committees, GOV.UK, 16 September 2010, retrieved on 18 March 2020, www.gov.uk/government/publications/the- cabinet-committees-system-and-list-of-cabinet-committees#full-history [71] 11. Internet Archive: Wayback Machine, https://web.archive.org/web/*/https:/www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-cabinet-committees-system-and- list-of-cabinet-committees [72] 12. The National Archives, UK Government Web Archive, www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/webarchive [73] 13. UK Parliament, Deposited papers, parliament.uk, www.parliament.uk/depositedpapers [74]

Update date: Wednesday, July 1, 2020

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