Cabinet Handbook - 15th edition

The Prime Minister and Cabinet Secretary have released the latest edition of the Cabinet Handbook. The Cabinet Handbook sets out the structure, practices and processes of the Government’s Cabinet and its committees.

Annex C - Conduct of Cabinet and Cabinet Committee meetings

Notification of agendas

  1. Once the forward program and agendas are approved by the Cabinet Secretary, Cabinet Division issues to ministers:
    1. an agenda for each meeting, showing the business to be considered, the ministers responsible for the items and any ministers or parliamentary secretaries to be co‐opted
    2. any draft minutes for endorsement based on matters previously considered by a Cabinet Committee.

Expectation of in-person attendance

  1. Ministers are expected to attend Cabinet and Cabinet Committee meetings in person. Remote attendance by telephone or video is not permitted, other than in exceptional circumstances.

Notification of non‐attendance – delay or absence

  1. If a minister does not expect to be available to attend a meeting of the Cabinet or a Cabinet Committee, that minister should advise the Cabinet Secretary in writing prior to the meeting outlining the reasons for the absence.

Co‐option

  1. Cabinet Division provides advice to the Cabinet Secretary on co‐option arrangements for each meeting.
  2. Ministers shown on agendas as being co‐opted for an item of business attend the Cabinet or Cabinet Committee meeting for the discussion of that item. Those ministers participate fully in the discussion of that item.
  3. Non‐Cabinet ministers with a portfolio interest in an item listed for a Cabinet or Cabinet Committee meeting (and who have not been co‐opted on the agenda) may seek to be co‐opted for the discussion by having the relevant senior portfolio Cabinet minister make a request in writing to the Cabinet Secretary.

Declaring interests

  1. Ministers and assistant ministers attending Cabinet or Cabinet Committee meetings must, in relation to the matters under discussion, declare any private interests, actual or perceived and pecuniary or non‐pecuniary, held by them, or by members of their immediate family of which they are aware, which give rise to, or are likely to give rise to, a conflict with their public duties.
  2. It is then open to the Chair of the meeting to excuse a minister from the discussion or to agree expressly to his or her taking part.
  3. Any such declarations will be recorded by the Cabinet note takers.
  4. Once a minister has made the Cabinet aware of a particular private interest, it will not normally be necessary to repeat that declaration in subsequent Cabinet discussions.
  5. If a significant time has elapsed since a declaration and the interest is one that might not be well known to colleagues, the minister might declare the interest again when the relevant matter is under discussion.

Declaration during discussions on appointments

  1. A minister would withdraw from discussion of any proposal to appoint a person to an Australian Government body who is a relative of that minister (see Annex I – Appointments process).

Presentations to the Cabinet

  1. Ministers must seek the Cabinet Secretary’s agreement to make a presentation to the Cabinet or a Cabinet Committee.
  2. Presentations would usually be made where there is a need to:
    1. provide supporting explanation to a submission that has been lodged and contains complex proposals which would benefit from a short presentation
    2. outline complex issues to the Cabinet in order to seek the Cabinet’s guidance.
  3. In seeking approval to make a presentation ministers should:
    1. where possible, attach a copy of the proposed presentation (of not more than 10 slides), which must include appropriate security markings (depending on the contents)
    2. indicate the purpose of the presentation.
  4. The presentation is lodged through the CabNet+ system and becomes part of the formal Cabinet record.
  5. Where material from presentations, or presentations as a whole, were not explicitly created for the purpose of informing or advising the Cabinet, they may be used for other audiences—but there must be no reference to the material ever having been before the Cabinet.

Cabinet room attendants

  1. The Cabinet attendant provides assistance and services to ministers during meetings of the Cabinet (and Cabinet Committees). Duties include passing messages between the Cabinet room and ministerial staff and the custody and distribution of documents circulated in the Cabinet room.