Cabinet of Austenesia
The Cabinet of Austenesia is the primary organ of the executive branch of Austenesia and its members are the ministers of the government. The Cabinet meets informally to advise the Chancellor on important issues of state and helps set the policy for the government but individual ministers also exercise significant control over their own portfolios and the government agencies they have the authority to oversee. The Chancellor appoints all members of the Cabinet and they serve at his pleasure. The current cabinet serves at the pleasure of Chancellor Martin Graves who was elected on April 10, 2010.
History
While the Cabinet was not specifically called for by name in the National Charter, it finds its origins in the clause that, from time to time, the Chancellor must hold a meeting with his ministers to determine the direction of the country and to set policy goals. Previously during the Imperial Period, the Emperor would summon a council of his advisers to advise him. As they often met in his kitchen area for dinner, they became known often as the Imperial Kitchen Cabinet or the Imperial Cabinet for short, a name that stuck far beyond the Imperial Period. When the Commonwealth was established, the Chancellor often named his cadre of ministers the cabinet and they have been referred to that in official correspondence ever since.
Composition
The Cabinet consists of all the ministers appointed by the Chancellor after he is elected by the Commonwealth Assembly and each one of assigned a specific portfolio. The duties of most cabinet ministers is two fold. First, their job is to provide policy guidance to the Chancellor and the Commonwealth Assembly from their portfolio after consulting with the agency heads in their portfolios. Secondly, ministers are to provide oversight to the agencies in their portfolio by referring them policy directives as ordered by the Chancellor and also investigating lapses of service. Often times, ministers also serve in a constituent service role where they can file inquiries with agencies under their control on the behalf of Austenesia citizens if they feel they aren't getting their situation dealt with.
Ministers serve at the pleasure of the Chancellor and he can dismiss them at will. Often however, this rarely happens except for good reasons becomes most ministers are usually selected from among the members of the Commonwealth Assembly and even after dismissal, they still can vote in the Assembly and their dismissal will often have severe political repercussions.
Rank of Standing
"Rank of Standing" refers to the line of succession in the Cabinet should the Chancellor vacate his office. If there is a vacancy, the first minister in the rank of standing becomes the next acting-Chancellor until the Commonwealth Assembly picks a new one. But Rank of Standing also refers to the ability of Cabinet members to speak when they are in Cabinet meetings and speaking on the floor of the Commonwealth Assembly in which higher ranked Cabinet members have seniority over lower ranked ones, regardless of how long they have served in the Commonwealth Assembly.
Privileges
All members of the Cabinet receive an annual salary of NSD$80,000 in addition to a pension and healthcare benefits. They do not get official housing although higher ranked ones receive security and are reimbursed for any travel expenditures made while on official business.
Current Cabinet
The individuals listed below currently serve in the Cabinet of Chancellor Martin Graves and listed according to their "Rank of Standing" with the highest ranked individuals being listed first in that order.
