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Powers of The Prime Minister

            
             The Prime Ministers position and responsibilities are NOT defined in any statute of constitutional document (Canadian Encyclopedia, p.1894). The roll of the Prime Minister is largely based on the British Constitution.
             To become the prime minister this individual must first assume the leadership of a national party. This person should be able to conciliate competing factions within the party and cabinet. The prime minister also should be able to delegate authority without loosing control and must be wary of offending various regions the country. Then the party must be elected by attaining the most seats in the House of Commons. "The powers of the Prime Minister are very great. "The functions of and duties of a Prime Minister in Parliament are supreme in their importance." says Arthur Meighen. The Prime Minister's power has been increasing over time, and the office now controls much of the power of the Canadian government. For example, the Cabinet is briefed on the budget, but the Prime Minister and the minister of finance actually make all major budgetary decisions. The Prime Minister can also act at will as the chief spokesperson for the government on any policy issue. Policy statements made by the Prime Minister become by default a government policy. As shown here a Prime Minister has much power over government. A majority government might be known as a prime ministerial government and not a democracy because of the power that the prime minister has over his/her cabinet and ministers.
             One of the Prime Ministers powers is to appoint, reshuffle or dismiss ministers. A cabinet shuffle, (also called a reshuffle) involves the movement of a set of cabinet ministers by the Prime Minister. The power to dismiss or reshuffle exerts a substantial influence over the cabinet. This usually determines the collective decision of the cabinet without a formal vote taking place. The Prime Minister holds this principal position with the support of his cabinet.


Essays Related to Powers of The Prime Minister

1. The Powers of a British Prime Minister

... the timetable of government legislation in the House. In the way of describing the powers of the Prime Minister it is necessary to mention about the relationship between the Prime Minister and the parliament. In the House of Commons the Prime Minister's duties are to make formal statements, answer questions from MPs and take part in debates. Prime Minister's Questions lasts 30 minutes and takes place every Wednesday at noon when the House is sitting. The Prime Minister sits on the Government front bench on the Speaker's right, near the ... despatch box in the House of ... ...

  • Word Count: 1209
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

2. Comparison between the US and UK separation of powers

... two colleagues, the prime minister has increasingly made decisions previously made by the cabinet as a whole. Prime ministers have nevertheless been overruled by the cabinet on many occasions and must generally have its support to exercise their powers. Because the party with a majority in the House of Commons supports the cabinet, it exercises the sovereignty of Parliament. The royal right of veto has not been exercised since the 18th century, and the legislative power of the House of Lords was ... and decisions made by courts of law. The reigning monarch is permanent head of state. Ro...

  • Word Count: 3105
  • Approx Pages: 12
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

3. Spirit Of Montesquiue - A Study In Malaysia

... the advice of the Prime Minister. Ministers are selected among the members of the Dewan Rakyat or the Dewan Negara. The cabinet is responsible for the running of the country's administration and for drawing up and implementing government policies. Therefore the power of administration lies with the cabinet and the Prime Minister in reality is the person with the highest administrative power (defacto ruler). However, Article 43(3) of the Federal Constitution states that the cabinet is collectively responsible for its actions. Separation of Powers in Malaysia The ... structure of ... ...

  • Word Count: 2493
  • Approx Pages: 10
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

4. Separation Of Powers In Malaysia

... the advice of the Prime Minister. Ministers are selected among the members of the Dewan Rakyat or the Dewan Negara. The cabinet is responsible for the running of the country's administration and for drawing up and implementing government policies. Therefore the power of administration lies with the cabinet and the Prime Minister in reality is the person with the highest administrative power (defacto ruler). However, Article 43(3) of the Federal Constitution states that the cabinet is collectively responsible for its actions. Separation of Powers in Malaysia The ... structure of ... ...

  • Word Count: 2493
  • Approx Pages: 10
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

5. Comparing Political Structures of France vs. Britain

... analyzed, simply because neither system holds to the assumed function of only executing policy. In comparison with each other, Britain's powers of Executive and Assembly functions are fused and the top position is the Prime Minister. France, being rather odd in politics, has both a Prime Minister and a President. In Britain, the prime minister is elected by the political party that holds the majority in Parliament. For the British Prime Minister, he is the "nerve center", keeping Whitehall and his ... legitimacy. Adding to the President's legitimacy is the fact that a vote of censure ca...

  • Word Count: 2394
  • Approx Pages: 10
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

6. Compare and contrast the British Parliamentary System with t

... branches: the executive, represented by the President; the legislative, represented by Congress; and the judicial represented by the Supreme Court. In the British system the executive and the legislative are united but have a separate judicial branch, though with different powers than those of the US. In the British parliamentary system the head of government and the head of state are different people. The Prime Minister is the head of government and the monarch is the head of state. The British monarchy stands for the continuity of British ... history going back to Anglo-Saxon times, a...

  • Word Count: 2945
  • Approx Pages: 12
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7. Tyranny of the Majority in Canada

... of the most, if not, the most important aspect of the function of the responsible government. In fact, if "the ministry loses the confidence of the House, the prime minister has to resign or request new elections " (Malcolmson & Myers 41). The "problem " with this law is that since the responsible government needs the confidence of the majority of the House of Commons, then both of the institutions agree with each other, which consequently results to the fact that executive and legislative powers are mostly in the hands of the ... responsible government and therefore, as mentioned in th...

  • Word Count: 851
  • Approx Pages: 3
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  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

8. The Life of Winston Churchill

... to take charge. On May 10th of 1940, Churchill was named by King George the VI to be the Prime Minister and Minister of Defense for Great Britain. Just after that, Germany began to march in on the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxemburg, putting great pressure on the British. Then came the invasion of France, a much weaker nation than Germany, which broke the Treaty of Versailles signed by Germany after their defeat ... nothing but boost Churchill's confidence in the allied powers. Churchill, FDR and Stalin then began working on war tactics and planning post-war acts by working together and c...

  • Word Count: 2087
  • Approx Pages: 8
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

9. Efficiency of the semi-presidential system

... office. The final major power the President has is much like a power given to the President in the United States, the power of invoking emergency powers such as the military. Unlike the President in the United States the President is given a term of five years. The President upon election selects his own Prime Minister who is responsible for the running the government on a daily basis. There is no direct formula for the responsibility between the President and the Prime Minister and the responsibilities ... differ depending on the two men's personalities. France ... ...

  • Word Count: 2105
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