Cabinet of Tumbra

The Cabinet of Tumbra forms the executive branch of the Government of the Federal Republic of Tumbra, and is its ultimate decision-making body. It is led by the Prime Minister of Tumbra, in their capacity as the head of government. The Prime Minister is simultaneously a member of the Federal Parliament who has been voted into the role by the House of Representatives. The other members of the Cabinet are Ministers who are Members of Parliament appointed by the President on the Prime Minister's advice. Cabinet members are prohibited from holding any office of profit and from actively engaging in any commercial enterprise.

Role and Composition
The Cabinet generally directs and controls the Government and is collectively responsible to Parliament. It also has significant influence over lawmaking. Ministers may be designated by the Prime Minister to be in charge of particular ministries, or not, in the case of a Minister without Portfolio. These ministers serve effectively at the Prime Minister's pleasure, and may be dismissed without reason by the President on advice of the Prime Minister. However, the political and decision-making authority of the cabinet has been gradually reduced over the last several decades, with some claiming its role has been usurped by a "prime ministerial" government. While supposedly a primus inter pares, the Prime Minister's authority and prestige has far outgrown that of the Cabinet, and political observers have claimed that the Cabinet is little more than an extension of their influence.

The Cabinet and its responsibilities are dictated by Article XXXII of the Tumbran Constitution, though the only limit imposed on it is in Article XXXI, with Clause 179b limiting the number of full ministers (the Prime Minister included) to 25. This effectively limits the number of federal ministries to 24, one for each minister and the Cabinet Office, which both the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister serve in. Currently, there are 23 full ministers and 20 federal ministries. By convention, one Minister heads one ministry and gets one job title; the only exceptions are the Prime Minister, who concurrently serves as the Minister of the Civil Service; the Deputy Prime Minister, who concurrently serves as the Minister for Intergovernmental Affairs, which handles the relations between the state governments and the federal government; and the Minister for Law and Justice, who concurrently serves as the Attorney General for Tumbra, and serves as the chief legal advisor to the government.

The same clause 179b also allows for Ministers of State to be appointed to assist Ministers in their work; while there is no constitutional limit on these offices, the statutory limit established by the Ministerial Salaries and Renumeration Act 1988 is 75. Currently, there are 65 Minister of State positions; however, several are filled by the same individual, giving a total of 47 MPs and 4 Senators being afforded the title of Minister of State. By convention, a Minister of State serves only in one Ministry. Jointly, the Ministers and Ministers of State are referred to as the full Ministry; the Cabinet is sometimes referred to as the inner Ministry. Only members of the inner Ministry, along with the Leaders of the House and Senate, and the Chief Whip, attend meetings of Cabinet.

In general, the inner Ministry is comprised entirely of members of the House of Representatives, while members of the full Ministry may come from either house. As of 2020, four Senators serve in the full Ministry, none of whom are full Ministers; the only Senator to attend Cabinet meetings is Senator Bill Tennyson, who also serves as the Leader of the Government in the Senate.

Meetings of the Cabinet
Cabinet meetings typically take place on Tuesday, to discuss the most important issues of government policy, and to make decisions. These meetings range in duration, depending on the leadership style of the Prime Minister; Malcolm Haywood was well known for his short meetings of the inner Cabinet, preferring instead to make decisions with those closer to him in an "inner Cabinet". The membership of the "inner Cabinet" is not limited to government ministers; advisors typically take part as well.

Accountability
By convention, two forms of accountability exist; collective cabinet responsibility and individual ministerial responsibility. In brief, collective cabinet responsibility means that means that members of the cabinet make major decisions collectively, and are therefore collectively responsible for the consequences of these decisions. Therefore, no minister may speak against government decisions. Should they do so, they are expected to resign. Individual ministerial responsibility, by contrast, means that individual ministers are personally responsible for the actions of the ministry. Should there be any failings or shortcomings in the ministries, then the minister is widely expected to resign. Personal indiscretions, should they come to light, also become a cause for resignation.

Current Cabinet
As of December 2020, the list of members attending Cabinet is as follows: