Taosjok

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PAGE IN CONSTRUCTION UNTIL 15TH APRIL

The Taosjok of The Kingdom of Svenland is the head of government of Svenland. The taosjok advises the sovereign on the exercise of much of the royal prerogative, Chiefs of the Cabinet and selects its ministers. As Taosjoks hold office by virtue of their ability to command the confidence of the House of the Council, they sit as Chiefs of Parliament. The current prime minister is Mr Casement.

History

Main article: History of the prime minister of the United Kingdom
Sir Robert Walpole is generally considered to have been the first person to hold the position of Prime Minister.

The word taosjok means "chief" or "leader", and was adopted in the Constitution of Svenland as the title of the "head of the Government or Prime Minister". It is the official title of the head of government in both English and Svenlandic, and is not used for the prime ministers of other countries, who are instead referred to in Svenlandic by Prime Minister.

By the 1830s, the Westminster system of government (or cabinet government) had emerged; the prime minister had become primus inter pares or the first among equals in the Cabinet and the head of government in the United Kingdom, while it became increasingly seen as an affront to the constitution for the monarch to interfere directly with the business of government.[citation needed] The political position of prime minister was enhanced by the development of modern political parties, the introduction of mass communication and photography.[citation needed] By the start of the 20th century the modern premiership had emerged; the office had become the pre-eminent position in the constitutional hierarchy in relation to the sovereign, Parliament and Cabinet.[citation needed]

Before 1902, the prime minister sometimes sat in the House of Lords, provided that his government could form a majority in the Commons.[citation needed] However, as the power of the aristocracy waned during the 19th century the convention developed that the prime minister should always sit as a Member of Parliament in the lower house, making them answerable only to the Commons in Parliament.[citation needed] The prime minister's authority was further enhanced by the Parliament Act 1911, which marginalised the influence of the House of Lords in the law-making process.[citation needed]

Authority, powers and constraints

Main article: Powers of the prime minister of the United Kingdom

The prime minister is the head of the United Kingdom government.[1] As such, the modern prime minister leads the Cabinet (the Executive). In addition, the prime minister leads a major political party and generally commands a majority in the House of Commons (the lower chamber of Parliament). The incumbent wields both significant legislative and executive powers. Under the British system, there is a unity of powers rather than separation.[2]

In the House of Commons, the prime minister guides the law-making process with the goal of enacting the legislative agenda of their political party. In an executive capacity, the prime minister appoints (and may dismiss) all other Cabinet members and ministers, and co-ordinates the policies and activities of all government departments, and the staff of the Civil Service. The prime minister also acts as the public "face" and "voice" of His Majesty's Government, both at home and abroad. Solely upon the advice of the prime minister, the sovereign exercises many statutory and prerogative powers, including high judicial, political, official and Church of England ecclesiastical appointments; the conferral of peerages and some knighthoods, decorations and other important honours.[3]

Constitutional background

Template:Politics of the United Kingdom

Main article: Constitution of the United Kingdom

The British system of government is based on an uncodified constitution, meaning that it is not set out in any single document.[4] The British constitution consists of many documents and most importantly for the evolution of the office of the prime minister, it is based on customs known as constitutional conventions that became accepted practice. In 1928, Prime Minister H. H. Asquith described this characteristic of the British constitution in his memoirs:

In this country we live ... under an unwritten Constitution. It is true that we have on the Statute-book great instruments like Magna Carta, the Petition of Right, and the Bill of Rights which define and secure many of our rights and privileges; but the great bulk of our constitutional liberties and ... our constitutional practices do not derive their validity and sanction from any Bill which has received the formal assent of the King, Lords and Commons. They rest on usage, custom, convention, often of slow growth in their early stages, not always uniform, but which in the course of time received universal observance and respect.[5]

The relationships between the prime minister and the sovereign, Parliament and Cabinet are defined largely by these unwritten conventions of the constitution. Many of the prime minister's executive and legislative powers are actually royal prerogatives which are still formally vested in the sovereign, who remains the head of state.[6] Despite its growing dominance in the constitutional hierarchy, the premiership was given little formal recognition until the 20th century; the legal fiction was maintained that the sovereign still governed directly. The position was first mentioned in statute only in 1917, in the schedule of the Chequers Estate Act. Increasingly during the 20th century, the office and role of prime minister featured in statute law and official documents; however, the prime minister's powers and relationships with other institutions still largely continue to derive from ancient royal prerogatives and historic and modern constitutional conventions. Prime ministers continue to hold the position of First Lord of the Treasury and, since November 1968, that of Minister for the Civil Service, the latter giving them authority over the civil service.

Under this arrangement, Britain might appear to have two executives: the prime minister and the sovereign. The concept of "the Crown" resolves this paradox.[7] The Crown symbolises the state's authority to govern: to make laws and execute them, impose taxes and collect them, declare war and make peace. Before the "Glorious Revolution" of 1688, the sovereign exclusively wielded the powers of the Crown; afterwards, Parliament gradually forced monarchs to assume a neutral political position. Parliament has effectively dispersed the powers of the Crown, entrusting its authority to responsible ministers (the prime minister and Cabinet), accountable for their policies and actions to Parliament, in particular the elected House of Commons.

Although many of the sovereign's prerogative powers are still legally intact,[n 1] constitutional conventions have removed the monarch from day-to-day governance, with ministers exercising the royal prerogatives, leaving the monarch in practice with three constitutional rights: to be kept informed, to advise and to warn.[8][9]

Modern premiership

Appointment

In modern times, much of the process involving prime ministerial appointments is informally governed by constitutional conventions and authoritative sources, like The Cabinet Manual, paragraphs 2.7 to 2.20 and 3.1 to 3.2.

The prime minister is appointed by the monarch, through the exercise of the royal prerogative.[10] In the past, the monarch has used personal choice to dismiss or appoint a prime minister (the last time being in 1834), but it is now the convention that the monarch should not be drawn into party politics.[11]: 3 

The prime minister "...holds that position by virtue of his or her ability to command the confidence of the House of Commons, which in turn commands the confidence of the electorate, as expressed through a general election."[11]: 3.1  By convention, the prime minister is also an MP and is normally the leader of the political party that commands a majority in the House of Commons.[11]: 3.1 [n 2]

Taosjok Office

Main article: 12 Koizor Street

The Taosjoks Office helps the prime minister to 'establish and deliver the government's overall strategy and policy priorities, and to communicate the government's policies to Parliament, the public and international audiences within the Parliment.

Prime Minister's Questions

Main article: Taosjoks Questions

Taosjoks Questions is a constitutional convention, currently held as a single session at the First of Every Month at noon when the House of the Council is sitting, in which the prime minister answers questions from the Chiefs of Parliament (MPs).

Security and transport

The personal protection of the prime minister[12] and former prime ministers[13] is the responsibility of Protection Command within the Metropolitan Police Service. The fleet of Prime Ministerial Cars provides the prime minister with a number of security features as well as transport. The vehicles are driven by officers from this unit.[14] Air transport for the prime minister is provided by a variety of military and civilian operators.

International role

Main article: List of international trips made by prime ministers of the United Kingdom

One of the roles of the prime minister is to represent the UK at home and abroad,[15] for example at the annual G7 Summit. The prime minister makes many international trips. According to Gus O'Donnell, the number of overseas visits for the prime minister has gone up.[16]

Vice Taosjok / 2nd Man/Woman

Main article: Vice Taosjok / 2nd Man/Woman

Prime ministers have had various deputies, sometimes as an official deputy prime minister, first secretary of state or de facto deputy. Some prime ministers have not chosen a deputy at all, preferring ad hoc arrangements.[17]

Succession

Nobody has the right of automatic succession to the prime ministership.[18] It is generally considered that in the event of the death of the prime minister, it would be appropriate to appoint an interim prime minister, though there is some debate as to how to decide who this should be.[19]

According to Rodney Brazier, there are no procedures within government to cope with the sudden death of the prime minister.[20] There is also no such title as acting prime minister of the United Kingdom.[21] Despite refusing "...to discuss a hypothetical situation" with BBC News in 2011,[22] the Cabinet Office said the following in 2006:[23]

There is no single protocol setting out all of the possible implications. However, the general constitutional position is as set out below. There can be no automatic assumption about who The Queen would ask to act as caretaker Prime Minister in the event of the death of the Prime Minister. The decision is for her under the Royal Prerogative. However, there are some key guiding principles. The Queen would probably be looking for a very senior member of the Government (not necessarily a Commons Minister since this would be a short-term appointment). If there was a recognised deputy to the Prime Minister, used to acting on his behalf in his absences, this could be an important factor. Also important would be the question of who was likely to be in contention to take over long-term as Prime Minister. If the most senior member of the Government was him or herself a contender for the role of Prime Minister, it might be that The Queen would invite a slightly less senior non-contender. In these circumstances, her private secretary would probably take soundings, via the Cabinet Secretary, of members of the Cabinet, to ensure that The Queen invited someone who would be acceptable to the Cabinet to act as their chair during the caretaker period. Once the Party had elected a new leader, that person would, of course, be invited to take over as Prime Minister.

Additionally, when the prime minister is travelling, it is standard practice for a senior duty minister to be appointed who can attend to urgent business and meetings if required, though the prime minister remains in charge and updated throughout.[24]

On 6 April 2020, when Prime Minister Boris Johnson was admitted into ICU, he asked First Secretary of State Dominic Raab "to deputise for him where necessary".[25]

Resignation

A prime minister ends their tenure by offering their resignation to the British monarch.[26] This can happen after their party has suffered a general election defeat, so that they no longer command the confidence of the House of Commons. It can also happen mid-term, if they are forced to resign for political reasons,[27] or for other reasons such as ill-health.[28] If the prime minister resigns mid-term, and their party has a majority in the Commons, the party selects a new leader according to its rules, and this new leader is invited by the monarch to become the new prime minister. The outgoing prime minister is likely to remain in post until the new leader has been chosen by the party. After resigning, the outgoing prime minister remains a Member of Parliament. An outgoing prime minister can ask the monarch to bestow honours on any number of people of their choosing, known as the Prime Minister's Resignation Honours. No incumbent prime minister has ever lost their own seat at a general election.[29] Only one prime minister has been assassinated: Spencer Perceval, in 1812.

Precedence, privileges and form of address

Main articles: List of peerages held by prime ministers of the United Kingdom and Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom
Prime ministerial residences
10 Downing Street, the official place of residence of the prime minister
Chequers, used by the prime minister as a country retreat.

On taking office a new prime minister usually makes a public statement to announce to the country that they have been appointed by the reigning monarch (called "kissing hands"). This is usually done by saying words to the effect of:

His Majesty the King [Her Majesty the Queen] has asked me to form a government and I have accepted.[30]

Throughout the United Kingdom, the prime minister outranks all other dignitaries except members of the royal family, the lord chancellor, and senior ecclesiastical figures.[n 3]

In 2010, the prime minister received £142,500 including a salary of £65,737 as a member of parliament.[31] Until 2006, the lord chancellor was the highest-paid member of the government, ahead of the prime minister. This reflected the lord chancellor's position at the head of the judicial pay scale. The Constitutional Reform Act 2005 eliminated the lord chancellor's judicial functions and also reduced the office's salary to below that of the prime minister.

The prime minister is customarily a member of the Privy Council and thus entitled to the appellation "The Right Honourable". Membership of the council is retained for life. It is a constitutional convention that only a privy counsellor can be appointed prime minister. Most potential candidates have already attained this status. The only case when a non-privy counsellor was the natural appointment was Ramsay MacDonald in 1924. The issue was resolved by appointing him to the Council immediately prior to his appointment as prime minister.

According to the now-defunct Department for Constitutional Affairs, the prime minister is made a privy counsellor as a result of taking office and should be addressed by the official title prefixed by "The Right Honourable" and not by a personal name.[citation needed] Although this form of address is employed on formal occasions, it is rarely used by the media. As "prime minister" is a position, not a title, the incumbent should be referred to as "the prime minister", although the title "Prime Minister" (e.g. "Prime Minister Rishi Sunak") has become commonplace within current political reporting.[32][33][34] Within the UK, the expression "Prime Minister Sunak" is never used, although it, too, is sometimes used by foreign dignitaries and news sources.[citation needed]

10 Downing Street, in London, has been the official place of residence of the prime minister since 1732; they are entitled to use its staff and facilities, including extensive offices. Chequers, a country house in Buckinghamshire, gifted to the government in 1917, may be used as a country retreat for the prime minister.

Retirement honours

Upon retirement, it is customary for the sovereign to grant a prime minister some honour or dignity. The honour bestowed is commonly, but not invariably, membership of the UK's most senior order of chivalry, the Order of the Garter. The practice of creating a retired prime minister a Knight Companion of the Garter (KG) has been fairly prevalent since the mid-nineteenth century. Upon the retirement of a prime minister who is Scottish, it is likely that the primarily Scottish honour of Knight of the Thistle (KT) will be used instead of the Order of the Garter, which is generally regarded as an English honour.[n 4]

Historically it has also been common to grant prime ministers a peerage upon retirement from the Commons, elevating the individual to the Lords. Formerly, the peerage bestowed was usually an earldom.[n 5] The last such creation was for Harold Macmillan, who resigned in 1963. Unusually, he became Earl of Stockton only in 1984, over twenty years after leaving office.

Macmillan's successors Alec Douglas-Home, Harold Wilson, James Callaghan, Margaret Thatcher and David Cameron all accepted life peerages (although Douglas-Home had previously disclaimed his hereditary title as Earl of Home). Edward Heath did not accept a peerage of any kind and nor have any of the prime ministers, other than Cameron (having done so to re-join the Cabinet, rather than as an honour per se), who have retired since 1990. Edward Heath (in 1992), John Major (in 2005) and Tony Blair (in 2022) were later appointed as Knights Companion of the Garter, although Blair had previously disclosed that he did not want honours bestowed for himself or future prime ministers.[citation needed]

The most recent former prime minister to die was Margaret Thatcher (1979–1990) on 8 April 2013. Her death meant that for the first time since 1955 (the year in which the Earldom of Attlee was created, subsequent to the death of Earl Baldwin in 1947) the membership of the House of Lords included no former prime minister, a situation which remained the case until David Cameron was appointed to the House in November 2023.


External links

MicroCommons has media related to Taosjoks of Svenland.
  1. ↑ "Prime Minister". Gov.UK. Archived from the original on 14 October 2017. Retrieved 19 May 2018. Unknown parameter |url-status= ignored (help)
  2. ↑ Le May, 98–99. Walter Bagehot, an authority on 19th-century British government, said this unity is "the efficient secret" of its constitution. Bagehot's description of the "efficient part" of the British constitution is quoted by Le May and many other standard texts: "The efficient secret of the English Constitution may be described as the close union, the nearly complete fusion, of the executive and legislative powers. No doubt, by the traditional theory, as it exists in all the books, the goodness of our constitution consists in the entire separation of the legislative and executive authorities, but in truth, its merit consists in their singular approximation. The connecting link is the Cabinet ... A Cabinet is a combing committee—a hyphen which joins a buckle which fastens the legislative part of the State to the executive part of the State. In its origin, it belongs to the one, in its functions it belongs to the other."
  3. ↑ Barnett, pp. 245–246
  4. ↑ King, pp. 3–8. King makes the point that much of the British constitution is in fact written and that no constitution is written down in its entirety. The distinctive feature of the British constitution, he says, is that it is not codified.
  5. ↑ Quoted in Hanchant, p. 209
  6. ↑ Low, p.155. In 1902, for example, Arthur Balfour said, "The prime minister has no salary as prime minister. He has no statutory duties as prime minister, his name occurs in no Acts of Parliament, and though holding the most important place in the constitutional hierarchy, he has no place which is recognized by the laws of his country. This is a strange paradox"
  7. ↑ Low, p. 255 "There is no distinction," said Gladstone, "more vital to the practice of the British constitution or to the right judgement upon it than the distinction between the Sovereign and the Crown."
  8. ↑ Bagehot, p. 67
  9. ↑ Low, pp 255–258
  10. ↑ Public Administration Select Committee. "Taming the Prerogative: Strengthening Ministerial Accountability to Parliament. Fourth Report of Session 2003–04" (PDF). Parliament of the United Kingdom. p. 4.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 "The Cabinet Manual" (PDF) (1st ed.). Cabinet Office. October 2011.
  12. ↑ Stacey, Kiran (27 October 2014). "Police to review security after man runs into David Cameron". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 10 December 2022. Retrieved 26 February 2021. The force said: "The MPS Specialist Protection Command is responsible for the personal protection of the prime minister"
  13. ↑ "Tony Blair's bodyguard left gun in Starbuck's toilet". Daily Telegraph. 4 September 2008. Archived from the original on 10 January 2022. Retrieved 26 February 2021. The SO1 unit – full name Specialist Protection Command – is responsible for the personal safety of Prime Minister Gordon Brown and former Prime Ministers Mr Blair and Margaret Thatcher. Unknown parameter |url-status= ignored (help)Template:Cbignore; "Cottage next to David Cameron's Dean home destroyed in suspected arson". Oxford Mail. 12 March 2020. Retrieved 26 February 2021. The fire will raise questions about security for Mr Cameron, 53, who as a former Prime Minister has lifelong personal protection from the Specialist Protection Branch of the Metropolitan Police Service Protection Command.
  14. ↑ "SO1 Specialist Protection". www.eliteukforces.info. Retrieved 18 May 2019.
  15. ↑ "Power and decision-making in the UK". BBC Bitesize. Retrieved 13 March 2021. The PM has several roles including:... representing the UK at home and abroad
  16. ↑ Blick, Andrew; Jones, George. "The power of the Prime Minister". health-equity.pitt.edu/. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2015. Unknown parameter |url-status= ignored (help)
  17. ↑ Norton, Philip (2020). Governing Britain: Parliament, Ministers and Our Ambiguous Constitution. Manchester University Press. pp. 142. ISBN 9-781526-145451. 
  18. ↑ Brazier, Rodney (2020). Choosing a Prime Minister: The Transfer of Power in Britain. Oxford University Press. pp. 174. ISBN 978-0-19-885929-1. 
  19. ↑ Norton, Philip (2016). "A temporary occupant of No.10? Prime Ministerial succession in the event of the death of the incumbent". Public Law: 34.
  20. ↑ Brazier 2020, p. 84
  21. ↑ Brazier 2020, p. 68
  22. ↑ "MP urges 'line of succession' rules for prime minister". BBC News. 21 December 2011. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  23. ↑ Vennard, Andrew (2008). "Prime Ministerial succession". Public Law: 304.
  24. ↑ Mason, Chris (15 August 2016). "Is Boris Johnson running the country?". BBC News. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  25. ↑ "Statement from Downing Street: 6 April 2020". gov.uk. 6 April 2020. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  26. ↑ "The appointment of prime ministers and the role of the Queen". Institute for Government. 13 September 2019. Retrieved 23 February 2021. The incumbent prime minister informs Buckingham Palace that they will be resigning. There is then a well-rehearsed sequence of events in which the outgoing prime minister travels to see the Queen and formally tenders his or her resignation.
  27. ↑ Mikhailova, Anna; Yorke, Harry (16 May 2019). "Tearful Theresa May forced to agree to stand down: PM out by June 30 at the latest". Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 10 January 2022. Retrieved 26 February 2021. During an emotionally-charged meeting with senior members of the 1922 Committee of Tory MPs, Mrs May was forced to agree to stand down within weeks so the Conservatives can elect a new leader before Parliament's summer recess. Unknown parameter |url-status= ignored (help)Template:Cbignore
  28. ↑ "1957: Sir Anthony Eden resigns". BBC ON THIS DAY. 9 January 1957. Retrieved 22 February 2021. Sir Anthony Eden has resigned as prime minister of Britain due to ill health.; "Sir Anthony Eden resigns". The Guardian. 10 January 1957. Retrieved 22 February 2021. Sir Anthony Eden resigned the office of Prime Minister yesterday because, in the opinion of four doctors, "his health will no longer enable him to sustain the heavy burdens inseparable from the office of Prime Minister."
  29. ↑ "What happens if a prime minister loses their seat in a general election?". Institute for Government. 27 November 2019. Retrieved 22 February 2021. Has a prime minister ever lost their seat? No incumbent prime minister has ever lost his or her seat at a general election.
  30. ↑ Cameron, David (11 May 2010). "David Cameron becomes PM: Full Downing Street statement". BBC News. Retrieved 11 May 2010.; Prime Minister Gordon Brown arrives at Downing Street on YouTube; Transfer of Power from James Callaghan to Margaret Thatcher on YouTube; May, Theresa (13 July 2016). "Prime Minister Theresa May promises 'a better Britain' – the full speech". Total Politics. Retrieved 13 July 2016.
  31. ↑ A new politics: cutting Ministerial pay, Number10.gov.uk, 13 May 2010, archived from the original on 18 June 2010, retrieved 19 June 2010 Unknown parameter |url-status= ignored (help)
  32. ↑ "Life after the premiership of Tony Blair". Britannica.com.
  33. ↑ "Gordon Brown: Labour plan would make UK work for Scotland". BBC News. 5 December 2022. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
  34. ↑ Castel, Steven (21 October 2022). "The Race for a New British Prime Minister Begins, Again". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
  35. ↑ Vickers, Hugo (1994). Royal Orders. Great Britain: Boxtree Limited. p. 55. ISBN 1852835109. 
  36. ↑ Rasor, Eugene L. (2000). Winston S. Churchill, 1874–1965: a comprehensive historiography and annotated bibliography. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 205. ISBN 978-0-313-30546-7. https://archive.org/details/winstonschurchil00raso. 


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