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A minister without portfolio is a government minister without specific responsibility as head of a government department. The sinecure is particularly common in countries ruled by coalition governments and a cabinet with decision-making authority wherein ministers without portfolio, while they may not head any particular offices or ministries, may still receive a ministerial salary and have the right to cast a vote in cabinet decisions. The office may also exist to give party leaders whose offices (such as a parliamentary leader) would not otherwise enable them to sit in Cabinet.
In Albania, "Minister without portfolio" are considered members of the government who generally are not in charge of a special department, do not have headquarters or offices and usually do not have administration or staff. This post was first introduced in 1918 during the Përmeti II government, otherwise known as the Government of Durrës. The members of this cabinet were referred to as Delegatë pa portofol (delegate without portfolio). The name "minister" was used two years later, during the government of Sulejman Delvina. [1] In the 1990s it was common the usage of the name Sekretar Shteti (Secretary of State) to refer to such a position. Mostly these roles were given to smaller allies by the leading parties. Nowadays the name Ministër i Shtetit (State Minister or Minister of State) is used.
Willie Kelly was given the title in the Cook Ministry from June 1913 to September 1914.
Stanley Bruce was given the title of minister without portfolio when he took up his position in 1932 as the Commonwealth Minister in London. He was given the title by Lyons' Cabinet so that he could better represent the PM and his colleagues free from the limitations of a portfolio. In this case the title was a promotion and carried considerable responsibilities. [2]
Bangladesh appoints ministers without portfolio during cabinet reshuffles or fresh appointments. Ministers are not usually appointed without portfolio as a coalition negotiation – all long run ministers end up with a portfolio. Suranjit Sengupta was a minister without portfolio in Sheikh Hasina's second government. [3]
The Constitution determines that the Ministries (and also other bodies headed by a Minister of State) are provided for by law, so the Federal Government has less freedom to create and reformulate portfolios as it happens in other cabinets.
During the brief parliamentary experience, the position of "Extraordinary Minister" was instituted to provide for political and administrative affairs [4] within the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, it was equivalent in prerogatives, advantages and salaries to a Minister of State. There were no nominations after the return to presidentialism, but a 1964 law created an "Extraordinary Ministry" to coordinate some related bodies that would be equivalent to a ministry of the interior. The reorganization of federal public administration in 1967 [5] provided for the appointment of up to four Extraordinary Ministers to perform temporary duties of a relevant nature.
Currently, the legislation requires that the Coordinator of the Government Transition Cabinet (the team of the candidate elected to the office of President of the Republic) be appointed as an Extraordinary Minister if the nominee is a Senator or a Federal Deputy. In 2018, then President Michel Temer issued a provisional measure creating an "Extraordinary Ministry of Public Security", it became a common ministry after National Congress converted the provisional measure into law. [6]
While the minister without portfolio is seen by some as a mere sinecure appointment, it has been a role that numerous political notables have played over time, including future Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, who filled the role in a Pearson cabinet in the 1960s; John Turner also "kept a seat warm" in a Pearson cabinet. Notable Conservatives who filled the role include R. B. Bennett, and Arthur Meighen; however, Meighen served this role after he had been prime minister.
The title of minister without portfolio has been used off and on; in recent times, though, the title has fallen out of favour, and the penultimate minister without portfolio, Gilles Lamontagne, was promoted to postmaster general in 1978. The practice has continued primarily under the guise of ministers of state without responsibilities in the ministers' titles.
The position has also been filled on the federal or provincial level by experienced politicians near the end of their careers as a way of allowing them to counsel the government and take on projects without the burdens associated with administering a government department.
In January 2021, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed Jim Carr as a minister without portfolio, in addition to his role as special representative to the Prairies. Carr had previously served as a cabinet minister until November 2019, leaving as a consequence of his diagnosis with multiple myeloma. [7]
| Deputy Prime Ministers without portfolio
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Three "control ministers" served as ministers without portfolio during World War I.
After the Liberation of Denmark in May 1945, the first Danish cabinet included four ministers without portfolio. Among these were Danish ambassador to the U.S. Henrik Kauffmann, who had conducted his own foreign policy throughout the war and refused to follow orders from Copenhagen as long as Denmark remained occupied by a foreign power. Kauffmann served in this capacity from 12 May to 7 November 1945. The three other holders of this title had joined the cabinet a few days before – Aksel Larsen (Communist Party of Denmark), Kr. Juul Christensen (Danish Unity) and Frode Jakobsen (Social Democrats).
Lise Østergaard held a position as minister without portfolio with special attention to foreign policy issues in Anker Jørgensen's cabinet from 26 February 1977 to 28 February 1980.
Anders Fogh Rasmussen appointed Bertel Haarder as minister without portfolio, but effectively Minister for European Affairs. Haarder served in this capacity from 27 November 2001 to 18 February 2005. The reason for appointing a minister without a ministry was the Danish European Union Presidency of 2002. Haarder was considered the most experienced Danish politician on European affairs.
Minister without portfolio is not a common type of cabinet position, and the last minister without portfolio served in 1949. The most famous one was Juho Kusti Paasikivi, who was a part of the "Triumvirate" of Prime Minister Risto Ryti, Minister of Foreign Affairs Väinö Tanner and Paasikivi during the Winter War and the year 1940. [8]
Mikko Luopajärvi (Agrarian Union) 17.4.1919 – 15.8.1919(Kaarlo Castren Cabinet), 15.8.1919 – 5.1.1920 (Vennola I Cabinet) [9]
Kalle Aukusti Lohi (Agrarian Union) 31.3.1925 – 31.12.1925 (Tulenheimo Cabinet) [9]
Matti Paasivuori (Social Democratic Party) 13.12.1926 – 15.11.1927 (Tanner Cabinet) [9]
Kalle Jutila (Agrarian Union) 17.12.1927 – 16.10.1928 (Sunila I Cabinet) [9]
Juhani Leppälä (Agrarian Union) 16.8.1929 – 27.8.1929 (Kallio III Cabinet) [9]
Eljas Erkko (Progressive Party) 20.10.1932 – 25.11.1932 (Sunila II Cabinet) [9]
Ernst von Born (Swedish People's Party) 13.10.1939 – 1.12.1939 (Cajander III Cabinet) [9]
Juho Kusti Paasikivi (Unaffiliated/No party) 1.12.1939 – 27.3.1940 (Ryti I Cabinet) [9]
Mauno Pekkala (Social Democratic Party) 17.11.1944 – 24.11.1944 (Paasikivi II Cabinet) [9]
Hertta Kuusinen (Finnish People's Democratic Party) 26.5.1948 – 4.6.1948 (Pekkala Cabinet) [9]
Aleksi Aaltonen (Social Democratic Party) 29.7.1948 – 30.7.1948 (Fagerholm I Cabinet) [9]
Unto Varjonen (Social Democratic Party) 29.7.1949 – 19.8.1949 (Fagerholm I Cabinet) [9]
Since 1949, a Federal Minister for Special Affairs (Bundesminister für besondere Aufgaben) is a member of the Federal Government that does not have charge of a Federal Ministry, although the ministry is now commonly assigned to the Heads of the German Chancellery to give this important government functionary cabinet-rank. The ministry was first created in October 1953 to give a ministry level position to Franz Josef Strauss, but has been used almost exclusively for the Head of the Federal Chancellery since the 1960s. A notable exception occurred in the course of German reunification when four members of East Germany's last government were made "Minister for Special Affairs" from October 3, 1990, to January 1991.
The position of a Minister without portfolio was first created in 1918, with Emmanouil Repoulis being the first Minister without portfolio. Previously, the term had been used to describe Prime Ministers who had not undertaken any secondary Ministerial position (e.g. Ministry of Foreign Affairs). Prominent politicians like Georgios Papandreou, Panagiotis Kanellopoulos, Napoleon Zervas and Spyros Markezinis served as Ministers without portfolio during their career, while novelist Nikos Kazantzakis had a brief, 46-day-long tenure as Minister without portfolio in Sofoulis' 1945 cabinet.
In 1991, the position was renamed to Minister of State; the last person to be designated Minister without portfolio and simultaneously the first Minister of State, is Mikis Theodorakis.
Since the inception of the state, Indonesia had ministers without portfolio, usually given the title Menteri Negara ('State Minister'). The number was not fixed, entirely depended on the behest of the President. Although not explicitly forbidden, Law No. 39/2008 on State Ministries mandated that a ministry must have specific function and responsibilities and also must have minimum number of directorates and other ministerial apparatuses, thus formation of minister without portfolio is currently unlikely in post-Reformation Indonesia.
Below is the list of ministers without portfolio that ever existed in Indonesian history.
The cabinet was unique, with President Suharto moved the Minister of Information Harmoko to the office of State Minister of Special Affairs (Indonesian : Menteri Negara Urusan Khusus) on 6 June 1997. The Ministry of Special Affairs was dissolved on 1 October 1997, following the inauguration of next-term's parliament and the appointment of Harmoko as its speaker.
The Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Act 1939 allows a Minister to be a member of the Government of Ireland who does not have charge of a Department of State, such a person to be known as a "Minister without portfolio". [12] Such a minister may be given a specific style or title. The only substantive minister without portfolio has been Frank Aiken, the Minister for the Co-ordination of Defensive Measures during World War II. [13] By the Emergency Powers Act 1939 then in force, the Minister for Defence was able to delegate some competences to him. [14] [15]
On a number of occasions a minister has been appointed to an incoming government with the title of a new Department of State. Between the date of appointment and the date of creation of the department, such a minister is formally a minister without portfolio. [16]
| Title | Govt | Minister | Appt to govt | Dept created | Dept |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minister for Economic Planning and Development | 15th | Martin O'Donoghue | 8 July 1977 [17] | 13 December 1977 [18] [19] | Department of Economic Planning and Development |
| Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform | 29th | Brendan Howlin | 9 March 2011 [20] | 6 July 2011 [21] [22] | Department of Public Expenditure and Reform |
| Minister for Rural and Community Development | 31st | Michael Ring | 14 June 2017 [23] | 19 July 2017 [24] | Department of Rural and Community Development |
| Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science | 32nd | Simon Harris | 27 June 2020 [25] | 2 August 2020 [26] | Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science |
When Helen McEntee took six months' maternity leave on 28 April 2021, her portfolio as Minister for Justice was reassigned to Heather Humphreys, in addition to Humphreys's existing portfolio as Minister for Social Protection and Minister for Rural and Community Development. McEntee remained a member of the coalition government as minister without portfolio, [27] and was reassigned to the Department of Justice on 1 November 2021. [28] On 25 November 2022, Heather Humphreys was again appointed as Minister for Justice to facilitate a second period of six months' maternity leave from December. [29] [30]
It is common practice in Israel to appoint ministers without portfolio as part of the coalition negotiations, as it allows small coalition partners a seat at the cabinet table. All cabinets in recent years have had at least some such appointment. The Governance Law passed in 2013 forbade ministers without portfolio effectively ending the practice, however in spite of some objections, after the 2015 elections this issue was revisited in the Knesset and it was allowed for the practice to resume. The full alphabetical list of ministers without portfolio since 1949 is:
In Kenya, ministers without portfolio are not common. However three individuals have held the position in the country's history. They are:
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A minister without portfolio in the Netherlands is a minister that does not head a specific ministry, but assumes the same power and responsibilities as a minister that does. The minister is responsible for a specific part of another minister's policy field. In that sense, a minister without portfolio is comparable to a staatssecretaris (state secretary or junior minister) in Dutch politics, who also falls under another ministry and is responsible for a specific part of that minister's policy field. However, one distinct difference is that a minister without portfolio is a member of the council of ministers and can vote in it, whereas a state secretary is not. The minister for development cooperation has always been a minister without portfolio.
In the second Balkenende cabinet there were three ministers without portfolio: Agnes van Ardenne (Development Cooperation), Rita Verdonk (Integration and Immigration) and Alexander Pechtold (Government Reform and Kingdom Relations).
In the fourth Balkenende cabinet there were three ministers without portfolio: Eberhard van der Laan (Housing, Neighbourhoods and Integration), Bert Koenders (Development Cooperation) and André Rouvoet, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Youth and Family.
The second Rutte cabinet had two ministers without portfolio: Stef Blok (Housing and the Central Government Sector) and Lilianne Ploumen (Development Cooperation).
The third Rutte cabinet had four ministers without portfolio: Sigrid Kaag (Development Cooperation), Sander Dekker (Legal Protection), Martin van Rijn (Medical Care), and Arie Slob (Primary and Secondary Education and Media).
The fourth Rutte cabinet has eight ministers without portfolio: Carola Schouten (Poverty, Participation and Pensions), Liesje Schreinemacher (Development Cooperation), Rob Jetten (Climate and Energy), Conny Helder (Long-Term healthcare and Sport), Christianne van der Wal (Nature and Nitrogen reduction), Franc Weerwind (Legal Protection), Hugo de Jonge (Housing and Urban Development), and Dennis Wiersma (Primary and Secondary Education and Media).
In the First Labour Government from 1935 Mark Fagan was a "minister without portfolio" from 1935 to 1939, as was David Wilson from 1939 to 1949. They were appointed to the upper house and made a "minister without portfolio" to add them to the cabinet although neither were elected to a seat in Parliament.
In the Third National Government, Keith Holyoake was made a Minister of State 1975–77 after he had retired as party leader, and in the Fourth National Government Robin Gray was made a Minister of State 1993–96 after he was replaced as Speaker (though he was also Associate Minister of Foreign Affairs). Both appointments were considered sinecures to avoid their return as 'backbenchers'.
The following were appointed to the Executive Council as ministers without portfolio. [35]
Liberal Reform United Labour National
†: Died in office
| Name | Portrait | Term of office | Prime Minister | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Carroll |  | 16 March 1892 | 20 February 1896 | Ballance | ||
| Seddon | ||||||
| Alfred Cadman |  | 21 December 1899 | 9 May 1901 | |||
| William Montgomery |  | 19 July 1893 | 7 November 1895 | |||
| Mahuta Tāwhiao |  | 22 May 1903 | 6 August 1906 | |||
| Hall-Jones | ||||||
| Āpirana Ngata |  | 7 January 1909 | 28 March 1912 | Ward | ||
| Peter Buck |  | 28 March 1912 | 10 July 1912 | Mackenzie | ||
| Thomas Buxton |  | 28 March 1912 | 10 July 1912 | |||
| Māui Pōmare |  | 10 July 1912 | 3 May 1916 | Massey | ||
| William Fraser |  | 27 July 1920 | 16 July 1923† | |||
| David Guthrie |  | 25 June 1924 | 31 March 1927† | |||
| Bell | ||||||
| Coates | ||||||
| Heaton Rhodes |  | 18 January 1926 | 10 December 1928 | |||
| Francis Bell |  | 24 May 1926 | 25 August 1928 | |||
| Sir Joseph Ward |  | 28 May 1930 | 8 July 1930† | Forbes | ||
| Robert Masters |  | 20 August 1930 | 22 September 1931 | |||
| Mark Fagan |  | 6 December 1935 | 18 July 1939 | Savage | ||
| David Wilson |  | 18 November 1939 | 30 May 1940 | |||
| Fraser | ||||||
| Paraire Karaka Paikea |  | 21 January 1941 | 6 May 1943† | |||
| Eruera Tirikatene |  | 26 May 1943 | 13 December 1949 | |||
| Adam Hamilton |  | 16 July 1940 | 5 October 1942 | |||
| Gordon Coates |  | 16 July 1940 | 5 October 1942 | |||
| William Polson |  | 15 March 1950 | 12 December 1950 | Holland | ||
| Sidney Holland |  | 20 September 1957 | 12 December 1957 | Holyoake | ||
| David Seath |  | 24 January 1962 | 20 December 1963 | |||
| Hugh Watt |  | 13 March 1975 | 12 December 1975 | Rowling | ||
As of 2017, ministers without portfolio (министер без ресор) are:
From 2009 to 2013 Karl Eirik Schjøtt-Pedersen (Labour) was a Minister without Portfolio and Chief of Staff in the Prime Ministers Office, where his job was to co-ordinate within government.
During the Japanese Occupation of the Philippines, then-Senate President Manuel Roxas was appointed minister without portfolio by the Japanese Government.[ citation needed ]
In Poland, the term is used for a minister who is a member of the Council of Ministers but does not head a government department and is not supported by a ministry. A minister without portfolio performs tasks determined by the Prime Minister. Since the enactment of the 1997 Constitution, this option has been provided for in Article 149(1). [36]
Following the Carnation Revolution, several politicians were made ministers without portfolio:
After the 1st Constitutional Government (1976–1978), there haven't been any appointments of ministers without portfolio.
A similar but not sinecural cabinet position, that of Minister Adjunct (ministro adjunto), who does not head a particular ministry but is instead tasked with the general interministerial measures found in the government programme, has been created in some Portuguese governments.
From 2007 to 2008, Dragan Đilas was a "minister without portfolio" in charge of the National Investment Plan.
In Singapore, the appointment holder is known as a 'Minister in the Prime Minister's Office'.
In Spain, in addition to the Ministers in charge of a Department, there may be Ministers without a portfolio, who will be responsible for certain government functions. In the event that there are Ministers without a portfolio, the scope of their powers, the administrative structure, as well as the material and personal resources attached to it will be determined by Royal Decree. [37]
In the Executive Yuan of the Republic of China, there are several ministers without portfolio at once. Currently, they are: [39]
President Jakaya Kikwete appointed Professor Mark Mwandosya as a minister without portfolio in 2012.
Since 2015, the cabinet list has included a minister without portfolio:
The Vice President of the United States is a member of the Cabinet but heads no department. As such, the Vice President may be assigned to policy areas of the President's choosing such as foreign diplomacy (Richard Nixon), space programs (Lyndon B. Johnson) or public health (Mike Pence). Prior to the mid-19th century, the Vice President's position as President of the Senate caused the office to be seen as primarily legislative in nature, and as such they were not assigned to deal with public policy.
Cabinet-level officials are president-designated additional members of the Cabinet, which can vary under each president. Most of them head no department, and some of them are not officers of the United States. For example, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget is the head of the Office of Management and Budget, which is an office within a department, namely the Executive Office of the President of the United States headed by the White House Chief of Staff. Similar situations apply (or applied) for the Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, the Trade Representative, Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, National Security Advisor, Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy.
An individual who has great influence on government affairs without holding formal office might be described as a "minister without portfolio". Such an appellation is completely unofficial (possibly intended jokingly or disparagingly) and merely serves to underscore the extent of the individual's already-existing influence; it does not grant any new influence or power. Examples include Bernard Baruch, [40] Arthur Burns, [41] and Ivanka Trump. [42]
Herbert Hoover, the Secretary of Commerce under presidents Harding and Coolidge, took the position on the understanding that he would have input on all matters pertaining to the economy. He used this concession so eagerly that Treasury official S. Parker Gilbert dubbed him "Under-Secretary of all other departments." [43]
In the first government of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam founded by Hồ Chí Minh after the August Revolution in September 1945, Cù Huy Cận and Nguyễn Văn Xuân were assigned the "Minister without Portfolio" positions. [44] In January 1946, the "Provisional Coalition Government" was installed, and Nguyen Van Xuan retained the post of Minister without Portfolio while Cu Huy Can was elevated to the Ministry of Agriculture. [45] From November 1946 to early 1955, the Viet Minh (and later the Worker's Party)-led "New Government" fought against the return of France to Indochina and the post Ministers without Portfolio was held by Nguyễn Văn Tố, Đặng Văn Hướng and Bồ Xuân Luật. [46] Since the 1954 Geneva Convention, the position has been vacant, except briefly during the 1960–1964 cabinet elected by the 2nd National Assembly, where Lê Văn Hiến occupied the post "Minister without Portfolio and Deputy Chair of the State Planning Commission." [47]
In 2014, Prime Minister Nguyễn Tấn Dũng tasked the Cabinet Office to examine the possibility of re-introducing the post "Minister without Portfolio." [48] There have been no further developments since.
The president of Dáil Éireann, later also president of the Irish Republic, was the leader of the revolutionary Irish Republic of 1919–1922. The office was created in the Dáil Constitution adopted by Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Republic, at its first meeting in January 1919. This provided that the president was elected by the Dáil as head of a cabinet called the Ministry of Dáil Éireann. During this period, Ireland was deemed by Britain to be part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, but the Irish Republic had made a unilateral Declaration of Independence on 21 January 1919. On 6 December 1922, after the ratification of the Anglo-Irish Treaty, the Irish Free State was recognised by Britain as a sovereign state, and the position of the President of Dáil Éireann was replaced by that of President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State but, as a Dominion of the British Empire, King George V was head of state until the dominion status was rescinded in 1949.
The Constitution of Dáil Éireann, more commonly known as the Dáil Constitution, was the constitution of the 1919–22 Irish Republic. It was adopted by the First Dáil at its first meeting on 21 January 1919 and remained in operation until 6 December 1922. As adopted it consisted of five articles. Article 1 declared that the Dáil had "full powers to legislate" and would consist of representatives elected in elections conducted by the British government. For the exercise of executive power it created a cabinet, answerable to the Dáil, called the Ministry, headed by a prime minister called the "Príomh Aire". The constitution was limited to an outline of the functions of the legislature and the executive; the Dáil later established a system of Dáil Courts, but there was no provision in the constitution on a judiciary. The final article of the constitution declared that it was intended to be a provisional document, in the sense that it was subject to amendment. As adopted the constitution came to only around 370 words. In comparison, the modern Constitution of Ireland has approximately 16,000 words. Overall, the structure of the document was as follows:
There were two governments of the 21st Dáil, which was elected at the 1977 general election on 16 June 1977. Both were single-party majority Fianna Fáil governments. The 15th government of Ireland was led by Jack Lynch as Taoiseach and lasted for 890 days. The 16th government of Ireland was led by Charles Haughey and lasted for 568 days.
The 2nd government of Ireland was the government of Ireland formed after the 1938 general election to the 10th Dáil held on 17 June. It was a single-party Fianna Fáil government led by Éamon de Valera as Taoiseach. Fianna Fáil had been in office since the 1932 general election. It lasted for 1,828 days.
The government of the 3rd Dáil was first both concurrently the 2nd provisional government and the 5th ministry of Dáil Éireann, formed after the 1922 general election held on 16 June 1922, and then the 1st executive council of the Irish Free State, formed after the establishment of the Irish Free State. They were led by W. T. Cosgrave, who had become the leader of the Pro-Treaty wing of Sinn Féin and on 27 April 1923 became the first leader of the Cumann na nGaedheal.
A Minister of State in Ireland is of non-cabinet rank attached to one or more Departments of State of the Government of Ireland and assists the Minister of the Government responsible for that Department.
The Minister for Labour was originally a position in the Government of the Irish Republic, the self-declared state which was established in 1919 by Dáil Éireann, the parliamentary assembly made up of the majority of Irish MPs elected in the 1918 general election. Constance Markievicz was the first person to hold the post. The office did not continue into the Executive Council of the Irish Free State.
The Attorney General of Ireland is a constitutional officer who is the legal adviser to the Government and is therefore the chief law officer of the State. The attorney general is not a member of the Government but does participate in cabinet meetings when invited and attends government meetings. The current attorney general is Rossa Fanning, SC.
The Constitution of Ireland vests executive authority in the Government of Ireland, which is headed by the Taoiseach, the head of government. The government – also known as the cabinet – is composed of ministers, each of whom must be a member of the Oireachtas, which consists of Dáil Éireann and Seanad Éireann. Most ministers have a portfolio of specific responsibilities such as departments or policy areas, although ministers without portfolio can be appointed.
The Executive Council was the cabinet and de facto executive branch of government of the 1922–1937 Irish Free State. Formally, executive power was vested in the Governor-General on behalf of the King. In practice, however, it was the Council that governed, since the Governor-General was bound to act on its advice. The Executive Council included a prime minister called the President of the Executive Council and a deputy prime minister called the Vice-President. A member of the Council was called an executive minister, as distinct from an extern minister who had charge of a department without being in the Council.
The Minister for the Co-ordination of Defensive Measures was the title of Frank Aiken as a member of the Government of Ireland from 8 September 1939 to 18 June 1945 during The Emergency — the state of emergency in operation in Ireland during World War II. The Minister was intended to handle Civil Defence and related measures, allowing the Minister for Defence to concentrate on matters relating to the regular Army. The office was also responsible for handling wartime censorship.
The Constitution Act 1936 was an amendment to the Constitution of the Irish Free State that removed all reference to the King, to the office of Governor-General, and almost completely eliminated the King's constitutional role in the state. Under the Act most of the functions previously performed by the King and his Governor-General were transferred to various other organs of the Irish government. The only role retained by the King was as representative of the state in foreign affairs. The amendment passed through the Oireachtas at the same time as the External Relations Act, becoming law on 11 December 1936. Its long title was:
An Act to effect certain amendments of the Constitution in relation to the executive authority and power and in relation to the performance of certain executive functions.
In the Irish Free State, an extern minister, formally a Minister who shall not be a Member of the Executive Council, was a minister who had charge of a department but was not a member of the Executive Council. Extern ministers were individually nominated by Dáil Éireann, whereas of the Executive Council only the President was: he in turn nominated the other members. All ministers were formally appointed by the Governor-General. The Executive Council included the senior ministers, exercised cabinet collective responsibility, and had to be TDs ; the extern ministers filled more junior technocratic roles, and need not be legislators, though in fact all were TDs. In practice, all ministers formed a united administration, and no extern ministers were appointed after 1927.
The Ministers and Secretaries Acts 1924 to 2020 is the legislation which governs the appointment of ministers to the Government of Ireland and the allocation of functions between departments of state. It is subject in particular to the provisions of Article 28 of the Constitution of Ireland. The Acts allow for the appointment of between 7 and 15 Ministers of Government across 17 Departments, and for the appointment of up to 20 junior ministers, titled Ministers of State, to assist the Ministers of Government in their powers and duties.
A Department of State of Ireland is a department or ministry of the Government of Ireland. The head of such a department is a minister termed a Minister of the Government; prior to 1977 such ministers were called Ministers of State, a term now used for junior (non-cabinet) ministers. Most members of the government are Ministers of the Government, though there may occasionally be a minister without portfolio who does not head a department of state. The law regarding the departments of state and ministers of the government is based in the Constitution of Ireland, primarily in Article 28; legislative detail is given in the Ministers and Secretaries Acts 1924 to 2020.
The Department of Finance is a department of the Government of Ireland. It is led by the Minister for Finance and is assisted by two Minister of State.
The 29th government of Ireland was the government of Ireland which was formed following the 2011 general election to the 31st Dáil on 25 February 2011. It was a coalition government of Fine Gael and the Labour Party led by Enda Kenny as Taoiseach. From 2011 to 2014, Labour Party leader Eamon Gilmore served as Tánaiste, and from 2014 to 2016, the new Labour leader Joan Burton served as Tánaiste.
There were two governments of the 32nd Dáil, which was elected at the general election held on 26 February 2016. The 30th government of Ireland was led by Enda Kenny as Taoiseach and the 31st government of Ireland was led by Leo Varadkar as Taoiseach. They were minority governments with Fine Gael and Independent TDs at cabinet, reliant on the support of other Independent TDs, and a confidence and supply arrangement with Fianna Fáil. It was the first time Fine Gael had returned to government after a general election, and the succession of Varadkar as Taoiseach in 2017 was the first time a Fine Gael leader had succeeded a party colleague as Taoiseach within a Dáil term.
There have been three governments of the 33rd Dáil to date, being coalition governments of Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Green Party. This followed the 2020 general election to Dáil Éireann held on 8 February, and negotiations on a programme for government that lasted till June. The parties agreed on a rotation, with the two major party leaders alternating as Taoiseach. The makeup of the parties resulted in a centrist coalition. It was the first time that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have participated in the same government, which Leo Varadkar described as the end of what has often been referred to as Civil War politics.
The Minister for Economic Planning and Development is a member of the Government not having charge of a Department of State, who is therefore, under section 4 (2) of the Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Act 1939 a Minister without portfolio. His title is not derived from the title of a Department of which he is head, because it does not exist, but it is a title that has been assigned to him by the Government pursuant to section 4 (3) of the 1939 Act.
he was a minister without portfolio from 1963 to 1965
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