Prime Minister

A Prime Minister is the most senior minister of a cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. They are usually, but need not always be, a politician. In many systems the Prime Minister selects and can dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the Government. In most systems they are the presiding member and chairperson of the cabinet. In a minority of systems, notably in semi-presidential system of government, a prime minister is the official who is appointed to manage the civil service and execute the directives of the President.

In parliamentary systems like the Westminster system, the prime minister is the presiding head of the government while the position of head of state (the King, Queen, President, or Governor-General facto), who may officially be the head of the executive, is largely ceremonial. The Prime Minister is often, but not always, a member of parliament and is expected with other ministers to ensure the passage of bills through the legislature. In some monarchies the prime minister also exercises executive powers (known as the Royal Prerogative) which are constitutionally vested in the Crown and can be exercised without the approval of parliament.

As well as being Head of Government, a prime minister may have other roles or titles—the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, for example, is also First Lord of the Treasury.Contrary to popular perception the two posts are separate and need not be held by the one person. The last prime minister not to be First Lord of the Treasury was Lord Salisbury at the turn of the 20th century. 10 Downing Street is actually the First Lord's residence, not the Prime Minister's. As Salisbury was not First Lord he had to live elsewhere as prime minister. Prime ministers may take other ministerial posts—for example during the Second World War Winston Churchill was also Minister of Defence (although there was then no Ministry of Defence).

Primus inter pares

Historically, prime ministers are often referred to Primus inter pares, a Latin term translated as First Among Equals, and which reflects the original concept of a prime minister as merely the first minister or most senior minister to the monarch, not the dominant or presiding minister, a role later assumed by many prime ministers in many states.

History

While the modern office of Prime Minister developed in the UK the first actual usage of the word Prime Minister or Premiere Minstre was used by Cardinal Richelieu, when, in 1624 he was named to head the royal council as prime minister of France. Louis XIV and his decendants generally attempted to avoid giving this title to their chief ministers. The term Prime Minister in the sense that we know it originated in the 18th century in the United Kingdom. Since medieval times Kings of England and the United Kingdom had ministers in whom they placed special trust and who were regarded as the head of the government. Examples were Thomas Cromwell under Henry VIII, Robert Cecil under Elizabeth I, Clarendon under Charles II and Godolphin under Queen Anne. These ministers held a variety of formal posts, but were commonly known as "the Minister," the "first Minister" and finally the "Prime Minister."

The power of these ministers depended entirely on the personal favour of the Monarch. Although managing the Parliament was among the necessary skills of holding high office, they did not depend on a parliamentary majority for their power. Although there was a Cabinet, it was appointed entirely by the Monarch, and the Monarch usually presided over its meetings. When the Monarch tired of a first minister, they could be dismissed, or worse: Cromwell was executed and Clarendon driven into exile when they lost favour. Kings sometimes divided power equally between two or more ministers to prevent one minister becoming too powerful. Late in Anne's reign, for example, the Tory ministers Harley and St. John shared power.

The turning point in the evolution of the prime ministership came with the death of Anne in 1714 and the accession of George I. George spoke no English, spent much of his time at his home in Hannover, and had neither knowledge of nor interest in the details of English government. In these circumstances it was inevitable that the King's first minister would become the de facto head of the government. From 1721 this was the Whig politician Robert Walpole, who held office for twenty-one years. Walpole chaired Cabinet meetings, appointed all the other ministers, dispensed the royal patronage and packed the House of Commons with his supporters. Under Walpole, the doctrine of Cabinet solidarity developed. Walpole required that no minister other than him have private dealings with the King, and also that when the Cabinet had agreed on a policy, all ministers must defend it in public or resign. As a later Prime Minister, Lord Melbourne, said: "It matters not what we say, gentlemen, so long as we all say the same thing."

Walpole always denied that he was a "Prime Minister," and throughout the 18th century parliamentarians and legal scholars continued to deny that any such position was known to the Constitution. The title was first referred to on Government documents during the administration of Benjamin Disraeli but did not appear in the formal British Order of precedence until 1905. George II and George III made strenuous efforts to reclaim the personal power of the Monarch, but the increasing complexity and expense of government meant that a minister who could command the loyalty of the Commons was increasingly necessary. The long tenure of the wartime Prime Minister Pitt the Younger (1783-1801), combined with the mental illness of George III, consolidated the power of the post. By the reign of Queen Victoria it was undisputed that the Prime Minister was real ruler of the country, although his power was always conditional on the support of a majority in the Commons.

The prestige of British institutions in the 19th century and the growth of the British Empire saw the British model of Cabinet government, headed by a Prime Minister, widely copied, both in other European countries and in British colonial territories as they developed self-government. In some places alternative titles such as "Premier," "Chief Minister," "First Minister of State", "President of the Council" or "Chancellor" were adopted, but the essentials of the office were the same. By the late 20th century the majority of the world's countries had a Prime Minister or equivalent minister, holding office under either a constitutional monarchy or a ceremonial president. The main exceptions to this system have been the United States and the presidential republics in Latin America, modelled on the U.S. system, in which the President directly exercises executive authority.

Prime ministers in republics and in monarchies

The post of prime minister is one which may be encountered both in constitutional monarchies (such as Belgium, Denmark, Japan, The Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom), and in republics in which the head of state is an elected (such as France, Finland, Ireland, Romania) or unelected official (such as India, Germany) with varying degrees of real power. This contrasts with the presidential system, in which the President (or equivalent) is both the head of state and the head of the government. See also "First Minister" , "Premier", "Chief Minister" "Chancellor" and "Taoiseach": alternative titles usually equivalent in meaning to, or translated as, "prime minister."

In some presidential or semi-presidential systems such as those of France, Russia, South Korea, or Taiwan the prime minister is an official generally appointed by the President but approved by the legislature and responsible for carrying out the directives of the President and managing the civil service. In these systems, it is possible for the president and the prime minister to be from different political parties if the legislature is controlled by a party different from that of the president. When it arises, such a state of affairs is usually referred to as (political) cohabitation.

Entry into office

In parliamentary systems a prime minister can enter into office by a number of means.

By appointment by the Head of State, without reference to parliament: In most Westminster systems (including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, India and the United Kingdom) the appointment of the Prime Minister is a royal prerogative exercised by the Queen or the Governor-General. No parliamentary vote takes place on who is forming a government. However as the government will have to outline its legislative programme to parliament in the Speech from the Throne, the speech is sometimes used to test parliamentary support. A defeat on the Speech is taken to mean a Loss of Confidence and so requires either a new draft (a humiliating act no government would contemplate), resignation, or a request for a dissolution of parliament. Until the early 20th century governments when defeated in a general election remained in power until their Speech from the Throne was defeated and then resigned. No government has done so for one hundred years, though Edward Heath in 1974 did delay his resignation while he explored whether he could form a government with Liberal support.

In such systems unwritten (and unenforceable) constitutional conventions often outline the order in which people are asked to form a government. If the Prime Minister resigns after a general election, the monarch usually asks the Leader of the Opposition to form a government. Where however a resignation occurs during a parliament (unless the government has itself collapsed) the monarch will ask another member of the government to form a government. While previously the monarch had some leeway in whom to ask, all British political parties now elect their leaders (until 1965 the Conservatives chose their leader by informal consultation). The last time the monarch had a choice over the appointment occurred in 1963 when the Earl of Home was asked to become Prime Minister ahead of Rab Butler.

Appointment by the head of state after parliament nominates a candidate; Example: The Republic of Ireland where the President of Ireland appoints the Taoiseach on the nomination of the Dáil Éireann.)
The head of state nominates a candidate for prime minister who is then submitted to parliament for approval before appointment as prime minister; Example: Spain, where the King sends a nomination to parliament for approval. Also Germany where under the Basic Law (constitution) the Bundestag votes on a candidate nominated by the Federal President. In these cases, parliament can choose another candidate who then would be appointed by the head of state.)
The head of state appoints a prime minister who has a set timescale within which s/he must gain a vote of confidence; (Example: Italy.)
Direct election by parliament (the premiers of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut); and the Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory
Direct election by the public (Example: Israel, 1996-2001.); The prime minister is elected in a general election, with no regard to political affiliation.
Appointment by a state office holder other than the head of state or his/her representative; Example: Under the modern Instrument of Government 1974, which came into force in 1975, the power of commissioning someone to form a government was moved from the Monarch of Sweden to the Speaker of Parliament, who, once it has been approved, formally makes the appointment.

Though most prime ministers are 'appointed', they are often inaccurately described as 'elected'.

Prime ministers and constitutions

The position, power and status of prime ministers differ depending on the age of the constitution in individuals.

Australia's Constitution makes no mention of a Prime Minister of Australia.

Canada's constitution, being a 'mixed' or hybrid constitution (a constitution that is partly formally codified and partly uncodified) makes no mention of a Prime Minister. The Prime Minister is formally the presiding minister of the Privy Council and the cabinet.

Germany's Basic Law (1949) lists the powers, functions and duties of the federal Chancellor.

Malta's Constitution of Malta (1964) lists the powers, functions and duties of the Prime Minister of Malta.

The Republic of Ireland's constitution, Bunreacht na hÉireann (1937) provided for the office of Taoiseach in detail, listing powers, functions and duties.

The United Kingdoms's constitution, being uncodified and largely unwritten, makes no mention of a Prime Minister. Though it had de facto existed for centuries, its first mention in official state documents did not occur until the first decade of the twentieth century.

Exit from office

Contrary to popular and journalistic belief, most prime ministers in parliamentary systems are not appointed for a specific term of office and in effect may remain in power through a number of elections and parliaments. For example, Margaret Thatcher was only ever appointed prime minister on one occasion, in 1979. She remained continuously in power until 1990, though she used the assembly of each House of Commons after a general election to reshuffle her cabinet. Some states, however, do have a term of office of the prime minister linked to the period in office on the parliament. Hence the Irish Taoiseach is formally 'renominated' after every general election. (Some constitutional experts have questioned whether this process is actually in keeping with the provisions of the Irish constitution, which appear to suggest a taoiseach should remain in office, without the requirement of a renomination, unless s/he has clearly lost the general election.) The position of prime minister is normally chosen from the political party that commands majority of seats in the lower house of parliament.

In parliamentary systems, governments are generally required to have the confidence of the lower house of parliament (though a small minority of parliaments, by giving a right to block Supply to upper houses, in effect make the cabinet responsible to both houses, though in reality upper houses, even when they have the power, rarely exercise it). Where they lose a vote of confidence, have a motion of no confidence passed against them, or where they lose Supply, most constitutional systems require either:

a) a letter of resignation or

b) a request of a parliamentary dissolution.

The latter in effect allows the government to appeal the opposition of parliament to the electorate. However in many jurisdictions a head of state may refuse a parliamentary dissolution, requiring the resignation of the prime minister and his or her government. In most modern parliamentary systems, the prime minister is the person who decides when to request a parliamentary dissolution. Older constitutions often vest this power in the cabinet. (In the United Kingdom, for example, the tradition whereby it is the prime minister who requests a dissolution of parliament dates back to 1918. Prior to then, it was the entire government that made the request. Similarly, though the modern 1937 Irish constitution grants to the Taoiseach the right to make the request, the earlier 1922 Irish Free State Constitution vested the power in the Executive Council (the then name for the Irish cabinet).

Titles

A number of different terms are used to describe prime ministers. The German prime minister is actually titled Federal Chancellor while the Irish prime minister is called the Taoiseach. In many cases, though commonly used, "prime minister" is not the official title of the office-holder; the Spanish prime minister is the President of the Government (Presidente del Gobierno). Other common forms include President of the Council of Ministers (for example in Italy, Presidente del Consiglio dei Ministri), President of the Executive Council, or Minister-President. In federations, the head of government of subnational entities like states or provinces is most commonly known as the Premier, Chief Minister or Minister-president.

In non-Commonwealth countries the prime minister may be entitled to the style of Excellency like a President.

Chairman or chief?

Irish political scientist Professor Brian Farrell coined the term "Chairman or Chief" or describe the two alternative concepts of prime ministerial leadership, in his book of the same name about the office of Taoiseach.Brian F. Farrell, Chairman or Chief? The Role of Taoiseach in Irish Government (1971) The term, widely used in political science worldwide, draws a distinction between a head of government who is merely a facitator and co-ordinator of a cabinet (the "chairman"), and those who lead it forcefully from the front, setting its policy agenda and requiring all ministers to follow the leader's policies (the "chief"). Examples of "chairmen" have included Bertie Ahern (Ireland), John Major (United Kingdom) and Couvre de Murville (France), while examples of chiefs included Sean Lemass (Ireland), Margaret Thatcher) (United Kingdom) and Jacques Chirac under cohabitation.

Not every prime minister fits exclusively into either category: Eamon de Valera, though a dominant personality only was interested in controlling some of his government's agenda (usually constitutional matters and Anglo-Irish affairs), allowing large areas to besided by his colleagues. Though superficially a chief (and called "the Chief" by his colleagues) historians see him as more of a chairman, particularly in later governments. Winston Churchill too, though superficially a "chief", was more chairmanlike in later governments and in those areas in which he had little personal interest.

As well as describing office holders, individual offices could be described as belonging to one or other category. Among the more dominant prime ministerial offices in terms of powers, and so more chieflike, are the premierships of Ireland and Spain, where premiers can hire and fire at will. In contrast, offices such as President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State, Prime Minister of the Third French Republic, and the premierships of Belgium and The Netherlands are more chairmanlike in format. Lijphart referred to the premiership of the Netherlands as "primus inter pares without due emphasis on primus".Jean Blondel & Ferdinand Muller-Rommel (eds) Cabinets in Western Europe Macmillan, 1993 edition. p.81.

Description of the role

Wilfried Martens, who served as Prime Minister of Belgium, described his role as follows:

First of all Prime Minister must listen a lot, and when deep disagreements occur, he must suggest a solution to the matter. This can be done in different ways. Sometimes during the discussion, I note the elements of the problem and think of a proposal I can formulate to the Council (cabinet), the Secretary taking notes. The Ministers then insist on changing commas and full stops. The Prime Minister can also make a proposal which leaves enough room for amendments in order to keep the current discussion on the right tracks. When a solution must be found in order to reach a consensus, he can force one or two Ministers to join or resign.Wilfried Martens, quoted in ibid.

Articles on prime ministers

Lists of prime ministers

The following table groups the list of past and present prime ministers and details information available in those lists.

Country	List starts	Table shows parties?	Term given by years or dates?	Present Incumbent
Afghanistan	1953	-	years	None
Albania	1914	-	years	Sali Berisha
Algeria	1962	yes	years	Abdelaziz Belkhadem
Angola	1975	-	dates	Fernando da Piedade Dias dos Santos
Antigua and Barbuda	1981	-	years	Baldwin Spencer
Armenia	1918	yes	dates	Andranik Markaryan
Australia	1901	yes	dates	John Howard
Bahamas	1967	-	dates	Perry Christie
Bangladesh	1971	yes	dates	Khaleda Zia
Barbados	1954	-	years	Owen Arthur
Belgium	1918	-	dates	Guy Verhofstadt
Belize	1973	yes	years	Said Musa
Bulgaria	1879	yes	dates	Sergei Stanishev
Burkina Faso	1971	-	dates	Paramanga Ernest Yonli
Cambodia	1996	-	years	Hun Sen
Cameroon	1960	-	dates	Ephraïm Inoni
Canada	1867	yes	dates	Stephen Harper
Cape Verde	1975	-	dates	José Maria Neves
Central African Republic	1958	-	dates	Élie Doté
Chad	1978	-	dates	Pascal Yoadimnadji
China, People's Republic of	1949	-	dates	Wen Jiabao
Cook Islands	1965	yes	dates	Jim Marurai
Croatia	1990	-	dates	Ivo Sanader
Czech Republic/Czechoslovakia	1969	-	years	Jiří Paroubek
Denmark	1848	-	years	Anders Fogh Rasmussen
Djibouti	1977	-	dates	Dileita Mohamed Dileita
Dominica	1960	-	dates	Roosevelt Skerrit
Egypt	1878	-	years	Ahmed Nazif
Equatorial Guinea	1963	-	dates	Miguel Abia Biteo Borico
Estonia	1991	-	dates	Andrus Ansip
Fiji	1966	-	dates	Laisenia Qarase
Finland	1917	yes	years	Matti Vanhanen
France	1815	-	years	Dominique de Villepin
Georgia	1918	yes	dates	Zurab Nogaideli
Greece	1833	-	dates	Kostas Karamanlis
Greenland	1979	-	years	Hans Enoksen
Grenada	1954	-	years	Keith Mitchell
Guinea	1972	-	dates	Cellou Dalein Diallo
Guyana	1953	-	dates	Sam Hinds
Hungary	1848	-	dates	Ferenc Gyurcsány
Iceland	1904	-	dates	Geir Haarde
India	1947	yes	dates	Manmohan Singh
Iran	1824	-	years	Mir-Hossein Mousavi till 1989
Iraq	1920	-	years	Nouri al-Maliki
Ireland	1937	yes	dates	Bertie Ahern
Israel	1948	-	years	Ehud Olmert
Italy	1861	-	years	Romano Prodi
Jamaica	1959	-	years	Portia Simpson-Miller
Japan	1885	-	years	Junichiro Koizumi
Jordan	1944	-	dates	Marouf al-Bakhit
Korea, South	1948	-	years	Han Myeong Sook
Latvia	1990	yes	dates	Aigars Kalvītis
Lebanon	1926	-	dates	Fouad Siniora
Lithuania	1990	yes	dates	Gediminas Kirkilas
Luxembourg	1959	-	years	Jean-Claude Juncker
Malaysia	1957	yes	years	Abdullah Ahmad Badawi
Malta	1921	yes	years	Lawrence Gonzi
Mongolia	1912	yes	dates	Miyeegombo Enkhbold
Morocco	1955	yes	years	Driss Jettou
Myanmar (Burma)	1948	yes	dates	Soe Win
Nepal	1953	-	dates	Girija Prasad Koirala
Netherlands	1945	yes	dates	Jan Peter Balkenende
Prime Minister of the Netherlands Antilles	1954	yes	years	Emily de Jongh-Elhage
New Zealand	1856	yes	dates	Helen Clark
Newfoundland	1855	yes	dates	(Post Abolished)
Korea, North	1948	n/a	years	Pak Pong Ju
Norway	1814	-	years	Jens Stoltenberg
Pakistan	1947	-	dates	Shaukat Aziz
Palestine	2003	-	unknown	Ismail Haniya
Peru	1975	yes	dates	Pedro Pablo Kuczynski
Papua New Guinea	1975	-	years	Michael Somare
Poland	1917	-	dates	Jarosław Kaczyński
Portugal	1834	yes	dates	José Sócrates
Romania	1862	-	years	Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu
Russia	1991	yes	dates	Mikhail Fradkov
Saint Kitts and Nevis	1960	-	dates	Denzil Douglas
Saint Lucia	1960	-	dates	Kenny Anthony
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	1956	-	dates	Ralph Gonsalves
São Tomé and Principe	1974	yes	dates	Tomé Vera Cruz
Serbia	1805	-	years	Vojislav Koštunica
Singapore	1965	-	dates	Lee Hsien Loong
Slovakia	1918	-	dates	Robert Fico
Slovenia	1990	yes	years	Janez Janša
South Africa	1910	-	dates	(Post Abolished)
Spain	1902	yes	years	José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero
Sri Lanka	1948	-	dates	Ratnasiri Wickremanayake
Sweden	1876	yes	years	Göran Persson
Taiwan (ROC)	1911	-	dates	Su Tseng-chang
Thailand	1932	-	years	Thaksin Shinawatra
Tonga	1876	-	years	Feleti Sevele
Trinidad and Tobago	1956	-	dates	Patrick Manning
Turkey	1920	yes	dates	Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
Tuvalu	1975	n/a	dates	Maatia Toafa
Ukraine	1990	-	dates	Yuriy Yehanurov
United Arab Emirates	1971	-	years	Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
United Kingdom	1721	yes	dates	Tony Blair
Uzbekistan	1995	-	dates	Shavkat Mirziyayev
Vanuatu	1980	yes	dates	Ham Lini
Vietnam	1976	yes	dates	Nguyễn Tấn Dũng
Yemen	1990	yes	years	Abdul Qadir Bajamal

Footnotes

External links

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