Executive Council (New Zealand)

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The Executive Council (German: Executive Council ) in New Zealand is the highest executive body of the government of New Zealand. The Council has been part of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet ( DPMC ) since 1990 and is managed by the Cabinet Office .

Composition and duties of the Executive Council

The Prime Minister and all government ministers, including ministers who are not part of the government cabinet, attend the Executive Council meetings . The council is chaired by the governor-general without being a member . The Executive Council usually meets every Monday and makes recommendations to the governor-general to sign government contracts, make regulations or agreements. The meetings also provide an opportunity for ministers to update the governor-general about important political events or developments, including those that may be pending during the current week. Government bills are also discussed and government-approved bills are signed by the governor-general in order to become legally binding.

The Clerk of the Executive Council , who is also the Secretary of the Cabinet and supports the Executive Council in its work, is directly responsible to the Prime Minister and the Governor General.

When a new cabinet is sworn in, all ministers are first appointed executive councilors (members of the council) and then appointed ministers. With the passage of the Civil List Act of 1950, ministers and thus members of the Executive Council have been compulsory to be members of the New Zealand Parliament since 1950 . If a minister leaves parliament, he cannot be minister and member of the Executive Council for more than 21 days .

The authority and the list of duties of the Executive Council were enshrined in a letters patent on April 24, 1919 . The Executive Council itself has been in existence since 1841, when a governor was first appointed in New Zealand . The first governor at that time was William Hobson .

See also

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Executive Counci . Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet , accessed April 17, 2015 .
  2. ^ The Executive Council . The Governor-General , accessed April 17, 2015 .
  3. ^ A b The Cabinet System - The Executive Council . Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand , accessed April 18, 2015 .
  4. ^ Thomas Sherrard, clerk of the Executive Council, 1960 . Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand , accessed April 18, 2015 .
  5. ↑ Hobson, William . Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand , accessed April 18, 2015 .