State Council (Norway)
The State Council of Norway ( Bokmål : (Norges) statsråd ) is both cabinet and throne council (royal council, kongelig råd ) of the country.
composition
It consists of the state ministers and at least seven other members appointed by the king. As early as 1884, the king had chosen the councilors he had appointed from among the members of the Storting, following an unwritten rule . In 2007 this rule was enshrined in Section 15 of the Norwegian Basic Law . With the exception of the Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister, the Norwegian ministers also hold the title of Council of State (statsråd). The Norwegian word "stadsråd" designates both the body and its members, similar to the German word "Stadtrat", but differentiated by the grammatical gender, statsrådet is neuter .
The Council of State usually meets under the presidency of the King. Attendance is compulsory for the meetings of the State Council.
Decision making
Decisions of the Council of State are considered to be royal resolutions, but must be countersigned by the Prime Minister or, in military matters, by the Minister of Defense.
Ecclesiastical Council of State
The Ecclesiastical State Council of Norway was the highest body of the Church of Norway until 2012 and was personally identical to the State Council, whose members in turn had to be members of this state church. In 2011 he set up the permanent President of the Bishops' Assembly. With the constitutional reform of May 21, 2012, church and state were separated and its powers were transferred to the Church Council (Kirkerådet), which was established in 1969 .