Britain: An official handbook > 1959

44 BRITAIN: AN OFFICIAL HANDBOOK
himself unable to agree or to compromise with the view of the majority of his
colleagues in Parliament or elsewhere must resign. If he does not resign, he is held
to be responsible, and cannot afterwards reject criticism on the ground that he did
not personally agree with the policy adopted.
The doctrine of collective responsibility also means that the Cabinet is bound to
offer unanimous advice to the Sovereign, even when its members do not hold
identical views on a given subject.
The individual responsibility of a minister for the work of his Department means
that, as political head of that Department, he is answerable for all its acts and
omissions and must bear the consequences of any defect of administration, any
injustice to an individual or any aspect of policy which may be criticised in Parlia¬
ment, whether he is personally responsible or not.
Since the majority of ministers are members of the House of Commons, they are
available to answer questions and to defend themselves against criticism in person.
Ministers who are in the House of Lords must be represented in the Commons by
political subordinates qualified to speak on their behalf, i.e. by their Parliamentary
Secretaries and Under-Secretaries. Responsibility, however, cannot be delegated
and remains with the senior minister concerned.
Ministers are expected to take all decisions relating to their spheres of administra¬
tion, unless these are of such political importance that in their opinion Cabinet
sanction is required. . . . .
If any departmental decision brings a minister under fire of criticism in Parlia¬
ment he may be upheld by the Cabinet, which will then treat the matter as one of
confidence in itself; or he may be disowned, when he alone will be liable to lose
office. . j ur
Ministerial responsibility is an effective way of bringing government under public
control, for the knowledge that any departmental action may be reported to and
examined in Parliament discourages the taking of arbitrary and ill-considered
decisions.
GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS
Government Departments are organs of Government used to give effect to
Government policy when Parliament has passed the necessary legislation. They
may and frequently do work with and through local authorities, statutory boards,
and many Government-sponsored organisations which, while not forming part of
Government Departments, are under varying degrees of Government control.
A change of Government does not generally affect the number or functions of
Government Departments, although a radical change in policy may be accompanied
by a corresponding change in the Departments concerned. The widening scope of
Government activity has, however, led to the formation of a substantial number of
new Departments in the past half-century. A few have existed for over 200 years.
The work of some Departments, e.g., the Post Office and the Customs and Excise
Department, covers the United Kingdom as a whole. Other Departments cover
Great Britain (England and Wales, and Scotland, but not Northern Ireland), e.g.,
the Ministry of Labour and National Service; others cover England and Wales
only, e.g., the Ministry of Health, and there are similar but separate Departments
for Scotland and Northern Ireland. Some Departments, e.g., the Ministry of
Education, make special arrangements for Welsh affairs.
Departments differ in size and in the number, type and complexity of their
functions, and some have regional and local offices. Most Departments have a
minister of their own in control; a very few have no minister responsible to