The government

consists of over a hundred ministers and other officials chosen from both Houses of Parliament, who are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the Prime Minister. They belong to the party which forms the majority in the Commons, and are collectively responsible for the administration of national affairs. The Prime Ministe is appointed by the monarch and is normally the leader of the majority party in the Commons, possesses a great deal of patronage in choosing ministers and deciding on the composition of the government. The Prime Minister usually sits in the Commons, as do most of the ministers, where they may all be questioned and held accountable for government actions and decisions. The Prime Minister has historically been the connection between the monarch and parliamentary government. The Prime Minister consequently has great power within the British system of government. The Cabinet is normally composed of up to twenty senior ministers from the government, who are chosen and by the Prime Minister. Examples are the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Foreign Secretary. the Royal Cabinet developed more authority and independence, and became a parliamentary body. It has control of the government apparatus and ministries because it is composed of members of the majority party in the Commons. Cabinet government appears to have lost some of its original impetus, although there are frequent demands that more deliberative power should be restored to it. Although the Cabinet meets in private and its discussions are meant to be secret, the public is usually and reliably informed of Cabinet deliberations by the media. Ministerial responsibility is still an important constitutional concept, although some doubt its applicability today. Cabinet and other ministers should be seen to act as one. All must support a government decision in public, even though some may oppose it during the private deliberations. If a minister cannot do this, he or she may feel obliged to resign. In addition to collective responsibility, a minister also has an individual responsibility for the work of the relevant government department. This means that the minister is answerable for any mistakes. Government departments (or ministries) are the chief instruments by which central government implements government policy. Examples of government departments are the Foreign Office, the Ministry of Defence, the Home Office, the Department of Education and Science, and the Treasury . Most of these central departments are in London and are collectively known as Whitehall. The government departments are staffed by the Civil Service, which consists of career administrators. Civil servants are employed by central government in London and throughout the country, and are involved in a wide range of government activities. There are some 600,000 civil servants in Britain today. Nearly half of these are women, but few of them achieve top ranks in the service.

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Party political system	\|	Education

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