The Council of Ministers (Italian: Consiglio dei Ministri, CdM) is the principal executive organ of the Government of Italy. It comprises the President of the Council (the Prime Minister of Italy), all the ministers, and the Undersecretary to the Prime Minister. Deputy ministers (Italian: viceministri) and junior ministers (Italian: sottosegretari) are part of the government, but are not members of the Council of Ministers.
The Council of Ministers' origins date to the production of the Albertine Statute by the Kingdom of Sardinia in 1848. The Statute, which subsequently became the Constitution of the Kingdom of Italy, did not envision collegial meetings of individual ministers, but simply the existence of ministers as heads of their ministries, responsible for their operations. The Council of Ministers subsequently developed as a constitutional convention and the office of the President of the Council emerged from the need to co-ordinate the activities of the individual ministers.[1]
Formationedit
Appointmentedit
The Office of the Council of Ministers is regulated by the Constitution and consists of:
The President of the Council of Ministers (usually referred to as Prime Minister), is the chair of the council and is appointed by the President of Italy after post-election consultations with the leaders of parliamentary groups, the Presidents of the Senate and Chamber of Deputies, and former Presidents of the Republic. The prime minister is confirmed by a motion of confidence (nominal voting) of both Houses of Parliament no later than 10 days following the swearing of Government as per the Constitution;
Should either House not pass the aforementioned motion, the Prime Minister has a constitutional duty to resign to allow the President either to find a new majority for the support of another appointed Prime Minister or to call for new elections;
The Ministers, appointed by the President of Italy, but at the request of the Prime Minister;
As the per Constitution, the President has the power to question the choice of a minister, should there be grounds to call it into question. Until an agreement has been found, the head of the Ministry in question will not be appointed.
All powers of the Council of Ministers rest in the hands of the President of the Republic until the ministers assume their offices.
Oathedit
After the President of the Republic signs the appointment decrees, but before being able to exercise their functions, the Prime Minister and the Ministers must take an oath of office according to the formula laid out in Article 1.3 of Law n. 400/1988. The oath expresses the necessity of trust which is incumbent on all citizens, but especially on those holding public office (according to Article 54 of the Constitution).
Recalledit
According to Article 94 of the Constitution, the Government can have its confidence (or trust) revoked. The motion of no-confidence must be signed by at least one-tenth of the members of the House, and cannot be discussed for at least three days following the proposal. Once discussed, it must be voted through nominal appeal. While the recall of single ministers is not explicitly regulated, procedural practice allows for an individual motion of no-confidence: the first such case was Filippo Mancuso in 1995.[2]
The functions of the Council of Ministers are disciplined by the Constitution (article 92–96)[3] and by Law n. 400 of 23 August 1988.[4]
Relationship with other parts of the political systemedit
The Council of Ministers within a Parliamentary form of Government (e.g., Italy) is the principal holder of executive power – that is, the power to put a decision of the Italian political process into effect (i.e., execute it).
In relation to the Parliament, the "relationship of trust" (rapporto di fiducia) is crucial. For the Council of Ministers and the Prime Minister to exercise their functions fully and continue to stay in office, they must retain the political support of both Houses of Parliament. The relationship of trust is the core of parliamentary systems like the Italian one because it means that the Government is "responsible" to Parliament.
The President of the Republic has the power to appoint the Prime Minister and the ministers.
The regular judiciary is organised from an administrative-structural point of view by the Minister of Justice; however, the independence of the judiciary in relation to the other parts of the state remains firm, as is made clear by the existence of the High Council of the Judiciary which appoints, transfers, promotes, and disciplines members of the judiciary independently of the executive branch.
The members of the Council of Ministers, even if they leave their positions, are subject to the jurisdiction of the courts for activities committed in their official capacity only with the authorization of one of the chambers of the Parliament (art. 96 of the Constitution).[5]
Powersedit
As the main organ of the executive power, the primary role of the Council of Ministers is the actualization of a given national policy. The Constitution provides it with the following means for doing this:
Legislative initiative: The Council of Ministers can present bills to the two Houses of Parliament.
Decree power: The Council of Ministers can adopt two different types of decree that have the force of law (that is, with a legal power equivalent to laws approved by Parliament): the law-decree (provisional) in matters of urgency and the legislative decree (non-provisional) in cases where Parliament has expressly delegated legislative authority to the council. Frequent use of the decree power has seen substantial legislative power shift from Parliament to the Council in recent times.
The law-decree (arts. 72 and 77 of the Constitution and art. 15 of Law n. 400/1988) is an act drafted by the Council of Ministers and passed by a majority of its members, but only in cases of the utmost need and urgency. Once passed, it enters into force immediately and is proposed to either House of Parliament for conversion into law. If the decree is not converted within 60 days, its effects become null and void.
The legislative decree (art. 76 of the Constitution) is a tool by means of which the Houses decide (e.g., due to inadequacy or lack of time) not to discipline in a detailed way a particular subject-matter (except in cases that must be disciplined by ordinary law), while at the same time they adopt the principles and criteria (i.e., the "frame") within which Government will have to legislate. This binds the Government to follow specific limits, and is a law in itself (s.c. "delegating law"), which is approved by Parliament just like an ordinary law. Once the established deadline is passed, the Government can no longer legislate. Furthermore, should the Government not abide by the delegating law, it will exceed the delegation, which, if presented to the Constitutional Court, the latter will decree the lack of constitutionality of the legislative decree in its part that exceeds the delegation. Just like the law-decree, the legislative decree is drafted by the council and passed by a majority of its members. It does not need conversion into law.
Regulatory power: The ministers have two distinct but co-existing roles. They are, politically, the supreme executive authorities appointed by Parliament, but they are also the administrative heads of the State, the activities of which they direct in accordance with the political process. As administrators, the council and the individual ministers can produce "regulations" (regolamenti), which are legal implements subordinate to legislation. Thus, regulations which contradict legislation (i.e. laws passed by parliament, law-decrees, legislative decrees) are illegitimate and can be set aside by ordinary judges and annulled by administrative judges.
Tasks of the President of the Council and of the Ministersedit
The President of the Council directs the general policies of the Government and is responsible for them. He or she holds the unity of political and administrative direction by promoting and co-ordinating the activity of the ministers.
The Ministers are collectively responsible for the acts of the Council of Ministers and individually responsible for the acts pertaining to their ministries.
council, ministers, italy, council, ministers, italian, consiglio, ministri, principal, executive, organ, government, italy, comprises, president, council, prime, minister, italy, ministers, undersecretary, prime, minister, deputy, ministers, italian, vicemini. The Council of Ministers Italian Consiglio dei Ministri CdM is the principal executive organ of the Government of Italy It comprises the President of the Council the Prime Minister of Italy all the ministers and the Undersecretary to the Prime Minister Deputy ministers Italian viceministri and junior ministers Italian sottosegretari are part of the government but are not members of the Council of Ministers Council of MinistersItalian Consiglio dei MinistriLogo of the Italian GovernmentOverviewEstablished23 March 1861 162 years ago 1861 03 23 Kingdom of Italy 14 July 1946 77 years ago 1946 07 14 Italian Republic StateItalyLeaderPresident of the CouncilAppointed byPresident of the RepublicResponsible toItalian ParliamentHeadquartersChigi PalaceWebsiteOfficial website Contents 1 History 2 Formation 2 1 Appointment 2 2 Oath 2 3 Recall 3 Functions 3 1 Relationship with other parts of the political system 3 2 Powers 3 3 Tasks of the President of the Council and of the Ministers 4 List of current Italian Ministers 4 1 Possible current additional members 5 ReferencesHistory editThe Council of Ministers origins date to the production of the Albertine Statute by the Kingdom of Sardinia in 1848 The Statute which subsequently became the Constitution of the Kingdom of Italy did not envision collegial meetings of individual ministers but simply the existence of ministers as heads of their ministries responsible for their operations The Council of Ministers subsequently developed as a constitutional convention and the office of the President of the Council emerged from the need to co ordinate the activities of the individual ministers 1 Formation editAppointment edit The Office of the Council of Ministers is regulated by the Constitution and consists of The President of the Council of Ministers usually referred to as Prime Minister is the chair of the council and is appointed by the President of Italy after post election consultations with the leaders of parliamentary groups the Presidents of the Senate and Chamber of Deputies and former Presidents of the Republic The prime minister is confirmed by a motion of confidence nominal voting of both Houses of Parliament no later than 10 days following the swearing of Government as per the Constitution Should either House not pass the aforementioned motion the Prime Minister has a constitutional duty to resign to allow the President either to find a new majority for the support of another appointed Prime Minister or to call for new elections The Ministers appointed by the President of Italy but at the request of the Prime Minister As the per Constitution the President has the power to question the choice of a minister should there be grounds to call it into question Until an agreement has been found the head of the Ministry in question will not be appointed All powers of the Council of Ministers rest in the hands of the President of the Republic until the ministers assume their offices Oath edit After the President of the Republic signs the appointment decrees but before being able to exercise their functions the Prime Minister and the Ministers must take an oath of office according to the formula laid out in Article 1 3 of Law n 400 1988 The oath expresses the necessity of trust which is incumbent on all citizens but especially on those holding public office according to Article 54 of the Constitution Recall edit According to Article 94 of the Constitution the Government can have its confidence or trust revoked The motion of no confidence must be signed by at least one tenth of the members of the House and cannot be discussed for at least three days following the proposal Once discussed it must be voted through nominal appeal While the recall of single ministers is not explicitly regulated procedural practice allows for an individual motion of no confidence the first such case was Filippo Mancuso in 1995 2 Functions edit nbsp Chigi Palace in Rome the seat of the Council of Ministers and the official residence of the Prime Minister of ItalyThe functions of the Council of Ministers are disciplined by the Constitution article 92 96 3 and by Law n 400 of 23 August 1988 4 Relationship with other parts of the political system edit The Council of Ministers within a Parliamentary form of Government e g Italy is the principal holder of executive power that is the power to put a decision of the Italian political process into effect i e execute it In relation to the Parliament the relationship of trust rapporto di fiducia is crucial For the Council of Ministers and the Prime Minister to exercise their functions fully and continue to stay in office they must retain the political support of both Houses of Parliament The relationship of trust is the core of parliamentary systems like the Italian one because it means that the Government is responsible to Parliament The President of the Republic has the power to appoint the Prime Minister and the ministers The regular judiciary is organised from an administrative structural point of view by the Minister of Justice however the independence of the judiciary in relation to the other parts of the state remains firm as is made clear by the existence of the High Council of the Judiciary which appoints transfers promotes and disciplines members of the judiciary independently of the executive branch The members of the Council of Ministers even if they leave their positions are subject to the jurisdiction of the courts for activities committed in their official capacity only with the authorization of one of the chambers of the Parliament art 96 of the Constitution 5 Powers edit As the main organ of the executive power the primary role of the Council of Ministers is the actualization of a given national policy The Constitution provides it with the following means for doing this Legislative initiative The Council of Ministers can present bills to the two Houses of Parliament Decree power The Council of Ministers can adopt two different types of decree that have the force of law that is with a legal power equivalent to laws approved by Parliament the law decree provisional in matters of urgency and the legislative decree non provisional in cases where Parliament has expressly delegated legislative authority to the council Frequent use of the decree power has seen substantial legislative power shift from Parliament to the Council in recent times The law decree arts 72 and 77 of the Constitution and art 15 of Law n 400 1988 is an act drafted by the Council of Ministers and passed by a majority of its members but only in cases of the utmost need and urgency Once passed it enters into force immediately and is proposed to either House of Parliament for conversion into law If the decree is not converted within 60 days its effects become null and void The legislative decree art 76 of the Constitution is a tool by means of which the Houses decide e g due to inadequacy or lack of time not to discipline in a detailed way a particular subject matter except in cases that must be disciplined by ordinary law while at the same time they adopt the principles and criteria i e the frame within which Government will have to legislate This binds the Government to follow specific limits and is a law in itself s c delegating law which is approved by Parliament just like an ordinary law Once the established deadline is passed the Government can no longer legislate Furthermore should the Government not abide by the delegating law it will exceed the delegation which if presented to the Constitutional Court the latter will decree the lack of constitutionality of the legislative decree in its part that exceeds the delegation Just like the law decree the legislative decree is drafted by the council and passed by a majority of its members It does not need conversion into law Regulatory power The ministers have two distinct but co existing roles They are politically the supreme executive authorities appointed by Parliament but they are also the administrative heads of the State the activities of which they direct in accordance with the political process As administrators the council and the individual ministers can produce regulations regolamenti which are legal implements subordinate to legislation Thus regulations which contradict legislation i e laws passed by parliament law decrees legislative decrees are illegitimate and can be set aside by ordinary judges and annulled by administrative judges Tasks of the President of the Council and of the Ministers edit The President of the Council directs the general policies of the Government and is responsible for them He or she holds the unity of political and administrative direction by promoting and co ordinating the activity of the ministers The Ministers are collectively responsible for the acts of the Council of Ministers and individually responsible for the acts pertaining to their ministries List of current Italian Ministers editMain article Meloni government The current Italian government is led by Giorgia Meloni As of October 2022 update the government has 25 Ministers of whom 9 are without portfolio Office Portrait Name Term of office PartyPrime Minister nbsp Giorgia Meloni 22 October 2022 present Brothers of ItalyDeputy Prime Minister nbsp Antonio Tajani 22 October 2022 present Forza Italia nbsp Matteo Salvini 22 October 2022 present LeagueMinister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation nbsp Antonio Tajani 22 October 2022 present Forza ItaliaMinister of the Interior nbsp Matteo Piantedosi 22 October 2022 present Independent close to League Minister of Justice nbsp Carlo Nordio 22 October 2022 present Brothers of ItalyMinister of Defence nbsp Guido Crosetto 22 October 2022 present Brothers of ItalyMinister of Economy and Finance nbsp Giancarlo Giorgetti 22 October 2022 present LeagueMinister of Business and Made in Italy nbsp Adolfo Urso 22 October 2022 present Brothers of ItalyMinister of Agriculture Food Sovereignity and Forests nbsp Francesco Lollobrigida 22 October 2022 present Brothers of ItalyMinister for the Environment and Energy Security nbsp Gilberto Pichetto Fratin 22 October 2022 present Forza ItaliaMinister of Infrastructure and Transport nbsp Matteo Salvini 22 October 2022 present LeagueMinister of Labour and Social Policies nbsp Marina Elvira Calderone 22 October 2022 present IndependentMinister of Education and Merit nbsp Giuseppe Valditara 22 October 2022 present LeagueMinister of University and Research nbsp Anna Maria Bernini 22 October 2022 present Forza ItaliaMinister of Culture nbsp Gennaro Sangiuliano 22 October 2022 present Independent close to FdI Minister of Health nbsp Orazio Schillaci 22 October 2022 present IndependentMinister of Tourism nbsp Daniela Santanche 22 October 2022 present Brothers of ItalyMinister for Relations with Parliament without portfolio nbsp Luca Ciriani 22 October 2022 present Brothers of ItalyMinister for Public Administration without portfolio nbsp Paolo Zangrillo 22 October 2022 present Forza ItaliaMinister for Regional Affairs and Autonomies without portfolio nbsp Roberto Calderoli 22 October 2022 present LeagueMinister for Civil Protection and Maritime Policies without portfolio nbsp Nello Musumeci 22 October 2022 present Brothers of ItalyMinister for European Affairs Southern Italy Cohesion Policy and the NRRP without portfolio nbsp Raffaele Fitto 22 October 2022 present Brothers of ItalyMinister for Sport and Youth without portfolio nbsp Andrea Abodi 22 October 2022 present IndependentMinister for Family Birth Rate and Equal Opportunities without portfolio nbsp Eugenia Roccella 22 October 2022 present Brothers of ItalyMinister for Disabilities without portfolio nbsp Alessandra Locatelli 22 October 2022 present LeagueMinister for Institutional Reforms and Regulatory Simplification without portfolio nbsp Elisabetta Casellati 22 October 2022 present Forza ItaliaSecretary of the Council of Ministers nbsp Alfredo Mantovano 22 October 2022 present Independent Possible current additional members edit The Presidents of the Regions with Special Statute have the right to participate in sessions of the Council of Ministers in matters relevant to them are discussed distinct from general issues common to all the regions The Presidents of Sardinia Friuli Venezia Giulia Aosta Valley and Trentino Alto Adige Sudtirol have only a consultative vote while the President of Sicily has a full vote and the rank of a minister 6 Presidents of the Regions with Special StatuteMember Title nbsp Renato Schifani President of Sicily nbsp Christian Solinas President of Sardinia nbsp Erik Lavevaz President of the Aosta Valley nbsp Massimiliano Fedriga President of Friuli Venezia Giulia nbsp Arno Kompatscher President of Trentino Alto Adige SudtirolReferences edit La funzione del Presidente del Consiglio in Italian Retrieved 3 November 2023 Ministri del governo nomina e revoca la prassi in Italia OpenBlog in Italian 4 April 2016 Retrieved 26 September 2019 Article 92 and following Governo Italiano La normativa della PCM presidenza governo it Retrieved 26 September 2019 Article 96 Constitution Decree Law no 35 21 January 2004 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Council of Ministers Italy amp oldid 1188305207, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
