Cabinet confidentiality

‘Cabinet’, a key institution of the Westminster tradition of parliamentary practice, refers to a meeting of senior Ministers summoned by the Prime Minister. Cabinet also refers to a process of gaining policy coherence and political support at the apex of executive government. Yet Cabinet and indeed the Prime Minister are not referred to in the Australian Constitution nor were they established by statute. Both Cabinet and the office of the Prime Minister evolved over hundreds of years of informal conventions and practice in the United Kingdom. The system continued in colonial parliaments and the Commonwealth parliament since 1901 although the shape and structure of Cabinet have evolved greatly in this time. According to the latest edition of the Cabinet Handbook, published in July 2009, the matters discussed in Cabinet meetings include: •    New policy proposals •    Expenditure proposals for major capital works •    Major international security issues of strategic importance to Australia •    Strategic budget and whole-of-government issues •    Proposed new legislation and priorities for the legislative program. Contemporary issues in relation to the operation of Cabinet may include the level of Prime Ministerial control over cabinet proceedings, the (im)balance between policy and politics in Cabinet deliberations, the criteria for determining whether an issue is worthy of Cabinet consideration, the treatment of complex whole-of-government issues, and the challenge of meeting increasing expectations of prompt and decisive responses to fast changing issues. The issue of Cabinet confidentiality is contested and impacts on the ability of parliament to access certain information. Over recent years there has been some statutory reform and changing judicial interpretation concerning the accessibility of Cabinet documents. There have also been a number of parliamentary inquiries concerning, among other things, the power of parliament to order the production of Cabinet documents. This follows government decisions to withhold certain information from parliament on the grounds of Cabinet confidentiality. This paper focuses on the confidentiality of Cabinet documents covering the concept of Cabinet confidentiality, its origins and evolution and issues relating to cabinet confidentiality