CABINET DECISION MAKING

Early day motion 1512, tabled 14 July 2004 by Gordon Prentice (Labour). Signed by 36 members.

That this House notes with unease Lord Butler's observations on page 147 of his report concerning the nature of Cabinet discussions on Iraq; is dismayed that while a small number of key Ministers met frequently, no papers were circulated to the full Cabinet or to a Cabinet committee despite the fact that 'excellent quality papers' were written by officials and that information given to Cabinet ministers outside the inner circle and in the Cabinet forum was solely by way of oral briefings by the Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary and Defence Secretary; further notes that Lord Butler's conclusion that this practice 'reduced Cabinet Ministers' ability to prepare properly for such discussions' and this reduced 'the scope for informed collective political judgement'; deplores the way in which vital decisions on war and peace were taken on the full authority of the Cabinet but without the active participation and engagement of all its members; and calls on the Head of the Home Civil Service and the Prime Minister to give an undertaking to Parliament that the concerns expressed by Lord Butler on the machinery of Government will be fully addressed.

Signatures by party: Labour 27, Liberal Democrat 3, Labour/Co-operative 2, Plaid Cymru 2, Conservative 1, Scottish National Party 1.