• Home /
• Statewatch Database /
• Cabinet Committees

Cabinet Committees

01 January 1991

Cabinet Committees
artdoc August=1992

The government announced in May `in the interests of greater
openness' the names and membership of Cabinet Committees. These
included the Ministerial Committees on: Defence and Overseas
Policy (OPD); Nuclear Defence Policy (OPDN); European Security
(OPDSE); Hong Kong and other dependent territories (OPDK);
Northern Ireland (NI); Intelligence Services (IS); Home and
Social Affairs (EDH) and Ministerial Sub-Committees on: European
Questions (OPD(E)); Terrorism (OPD(T)); Drug Misuse (EDH(D)); and
Women's Issues (EDH(W), chaired by the Secretary of State for
Employment).
However, no details were given on ad-hoc committees of which
there were 140 in the last five year parliament on issues like
the poll tax. Nor were details given on the official inter-
departmental committees headed by Permanent Under-Secretaries
(top civil servants) of which there were 100 in the last
parliament. It is these latter committees which prepare all major
policy reports for ministerial committees.
Details were given on the ministerial committee on Intelligence
chaired by the Prime Minister and charged with keeping `under
review policy on the security and intelligence services' (the
other members being the Foreign Secretary, Home Secretary,
Defence Secretary, and Chancellor for the Duchy of Lancaster).
But no details were announced on the inter-departmental
Electronic Security Committee, the Permanent Under-Secretaries
Committee on Security and Intelligence Services (PSIS) or the
powerful Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC) chaired by Sir
Roderick Braithwaite. JIC is attended by officials from the
Foreign Office, MI5, MI6, heads of Defence Intelligence and GCHQ,
and officials from the Ministry of Defence, Cabinet Office and
Northern Ireland Office. The first half of JIC's meeting are
attended by the CIA and representatives of the Canadian and
Australian intelligence services. Weekly intelligence reports are
sent to Minsters in the JIC Red Book every Thursday morning.
House of Lords Hansard, 19.5.92; Independent, 16.6.92.

Statewatch vol 2 no 4, July/August 1992