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The Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) provides for information to be protected to the extent consistent with the public interest and the preservation of personal privacy. “Cabinet material” includes Cabinet and Cabinet committee agendas, papers, and…

Appointments made by the Governor-General outside Executive Council, Templates are available for appointments made by the Governor-General or appointments made by the Administrator of the Government outside of Executive Council . The Administrator fulfils…

When the Governor-General is overseas, then the Administrator of the Government fulfills the Governor-General's functions. The Administrator of the Government is the Chief Justice of New Zealand. In such cases the advice sheet must be addressed to the…

Introduction, This section provides information on international treaty making and the process for international treaty papers, including: the difference between international treaties and arrangements an outline of when Cabinet’s approval is required…

Any proposal to sign an international treaty, or to take binding treaty action, must be submitted to Cabinet for approval (see paragraph 5.80 of the Cabinet Manual ). The term “binding treaty action” refers not only to the conclusion of a treaty, but also…

The key features of the parliamentary treaty examination process, set out on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s website , are as follows. The Cabinet Manual and Standing Orders require the government to present all multilateral treaties and major…

As a general rule, Ministers should put before their colleagues the sorts of issues on which they themselves would wish to be consulted.  Ministers should keep their colleagues informed about matters of public interest, importance, or controversy. Where…

Laws usually come into effect only after their publication (with the exceptions being matters of national security or matters of particular commercial or legal significance where time is an overriding factor). The Parliamentary Counsel Office's (PCO’s)…

The Governor-General has delegated responsibility for the custody of the Seal of New Zealand to the Clerk of the Executive Council . Documents that require the Seal of New Zealand to be affixed to them include: warrants for the appointment of Ministers of…

The Executive Council (EC) is the highest formal instrument of government, through which the government collectively and formally advises the Governor-General. All Ministers of the Crown are members of EC (whether those Ministers are inside or outside…

If any policy changes need to be made to a bill after it has been through the policy and legislative Cabinet committee stages and been introduced, this is usually done through a Supplementary Order Paper (SOP). An SOP that serves a mechanical purpose (e.g…

Process for the development and making of secondary legislation, Download a PDF of the regulation work flow below.   The process for developing secondary legislation to be made by Order in Council, contained in paragraph 7.95 of the Cabinet Manual , is as…

Once the policy content of secondary legislation has been agreed and the legislation has been drafted, authorisation must be sought through Cabinet Legislation Committee (LEG) for the item to be submitted to the Executive Council (EC). Among other things…

Highly classified papers,  can only be processed and distributed in hard-copy. These are papers classified Confidential, Secret, Top Secret and/or with endorsements such as New Zealand Eyes Only. Highly classified items listed on Cabinet and Cabinet…

Background, This section provides information on the process for government responses to both select committee reports, petitions referred directly to Ministers, and Law Commission reports, and the requirements for related papers, including: the…

  Refer to the following pages for more information Template for Governor-General appointment documents Cabinet paper template - appointments Appointment paper organisation form and CV template

The Prime Minister Rt Hon Bill English has proactively released the Cabinet paper about the review of the Cabinet Manual. Three documents are published below: the Cabinet paper the revision-tracked version of the Cabinet Manual text that was attached to…

Involving the Treasury and the Minister of Finance, The Treasury should be consulted on all proposals which have, or are likely to have, economic implications, financial or fiscal (expenditure or revenue) implications, implications for the Public Finance…

Key points, “Cabinet material” includes Cabinet and Cabinet committee agendas, papers, minutes, and memos. You are responsible for ensuring that the Cabinet material you have access to is handled securely. CabNet is set up to allow “need to know”…

Power to Act for a Cabinet committee to take final decisions on an issue can be authorised by Cabinet, following a request by the responsible Minister. Refer to Detailed Power to Act processes this page for more information about the Power to Act…

Contact the Cabinet Office directly on, 04 830 5010, ., Cabinet Office Address, Cabinet Office Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet Parliament Buildings Wellington, Email:, [email protected], CabNet support, CabNet is a, database, the…

Appointed ministers are responsible for the actions, successes and failures of their departments. The Ministerial list contains information on the current Ministers of the Crown, and the portfolios and other responsibilities that they hold. The Directory…

This publication is part of the CabGuide .

It has been the practice for governments to exercise restraint in making significant appointments in the pre-election period (the period immediately before a general election, usually about three months). The question of which appointments are “…

Officials’ committees have been established for most Cabinet committees to support Cabinet committee chairs in progressing the government’s policy agenda. Officials’ committees support the chairs of Cabinet committees in ensuring that: critical papers are…

EC meetings are held on most, Mondays at 4pm in the Executive Council meeting room, on level 10 of the Beehive, and are presided over by the Governor-General or, in the Governor-General’s absence overseas, by the Administrator of the Government. From time…

What is Cabinet?, Cabinet is the central decision making body of executive government. Ministers are appointed by the Governor-General on the advice of the Prime Minister. All Ministers are members of the Executive Council. A list of the names and…

For detailed guidance about select committees, see paragraphs 7.112 to 7.126 of the Cabinet Manual , and the Public Service Commission’s guidance entitled Officials and Select Committees – Guidelines . Departments may not make a formal submission to a…

Ministers are expected to consult their relevant Ministerial colleagues before submitting Cabinet committee papers that deal with significant or potentially controversial matters, or that affect other Ministers’ portfolio interests. Where there is a…

Policy development often involves engagement with citizens and/or interest groups to gather views on issues and options. Any non-government consultation process should be discussed with the Minister’s office before proposals are developed for Cabinet.…

 , Refer to the following pages for more information, Template for Administrator of the Government appointments documents Cabinet paper template - appointment Appointment paper organisation form and CV template     

The deadline for lodging Cabinet and Cabinet committee papers is, 10am on the Thursday before the meeting, . When a public holiday falls on a Friday (Good Friday, Matariki, and sometimes Waitangi Day, Anzac Day) the deadline for lodging Cabinet and…