Great offices of state

The great offices of state are the four most senior and prestigious ministerial posts in the United Kingdom government. They are the only positions that have been continuously occupied in cabinet for centuries, and even predate the modern cabinet system. The four great offices of state are: prime minister, chancellor of the exchequer, foreign secretary, […]

Ministers of the crown

Ministers of the crown are MPs or members of the House of Lords (peers) who are appointed by the prime minister to specific roles within the government. They are responsible for setting the policy direction of government departments and are accountable to parliament for their actions. All ministers, from the prime minister down to the […]

Prime minister

The prime minister is the head of the government of the United Kingdom. By constitutional convention, the prime minister is the individual best placed to command the confidence (majority support) of the House of Commons – a description that generally aligns with the leader of the largest political party in the commons. The holder of […]

Cabinet

The cabinet is the ultimate decision-making body of the government of the United Kingdom. It is composed of the prime minister and the most senior government ministers, most of whom are secretaries of state in charge of major government departments. These ministers are accountable to parliament for decisions taken by the cabinet. The prime minister […]

Cabinet committees

Cabinet committees are sub-groups of the main UK cabinet, appointed by the prime minister to consider specific areas of government policy. They are a forum where the detailed work of government can be conducted, inter-departmental disagreements resolved and collective decisions made. The decisions reached by a cabinet committee have the same authority as a decision […]

Cobra / COBR

Cobra is the United Kingdom’s national crisis management committee. It is convened on an ad-hoc basis to coordinate the central government’s response to emergencies or major disruptions that have a national impact. The name Cobra or COBR is a widely used shorthand for the Cabinet Office Briefing Rooms, the suite of secure meeting rooms in […]