In the Westminster System ministerial responsibility is the notion that a cabinet minister bears the ultimate responsibility for the actions of their ministry.

This responsibility means that if waste, corruption, or any other misbehaviour is found to have occurred within a ministry, the minister is responsible even if the minister had no knowledge of the actions. A minister is ultimately responsible for all actions by a ministry. Even without knowledge of an infraction by subordinates the minister approved the hiring and continued employment of those workers. If misdeeds are found to have occurred in a ministry the minister is expected to resign. It is also possible for a minister to face criminal charges for malfeasance under their watch.

The principle is considered essential as it is seen to guarantee that an elected official is answerable for every single government decision. It is also important to motivate ministers to closely scrutinize the activities within their departments. One rule coming from this principle is that each cabinet member answers for their own ministry in Question Time/Question Period.

The reverse of ministerial responsibility is that civil servants are not supposed to take credit for the successes of their department, allowing the government to claim them.

In recent years some pundits have argued the notion of ministerial responsibility has been eroded in many Commonwealth countries. While the doctrine is a constitutional convention there is no formal mechanism for enforcing the rule. Today ministers frequently use ignorance of misbehaviour as an argument for lack of culpability. While opposition parties rarely accept this argument, the electorate is often more accepting. Courts in Britain have become less likely to find ministers guilty when their individual knowledge of or involvement in a crime cannot be proven. In most other Commonwealth countries such cases are today hardly ever brought to trial.

In Canada ministerial responsibility has been reduced as it has become increasingly common for top level civil servants to be called before parliament, bypassing the minister.

Ministerial responsibility can also refer to the collective responsibility of cabinet ministers to obey the will of the legislature.

External links:

• Ministerial responsibility in Canada