Cabinet meetings should be a reflection of the discipline, order and respect that is normally expected of other meetings. Cabinet is at the pinnacle of decision-making by the Executive and, for that reason, the standards expected of its members should be more exacting.

The Chair should always be respected and should always be addressed unless it is clear that the meeting does not require it. The Chair keeps order at the meeting, introduces each agenda item, directs discussion, and summarizes decisions.

In general, decisions are made by consensus as determined by the Chair. It is common for matters on which there is significant difference of opinion within Cabinet to be deferred until further information is provided and/or until consensus is reached.

Cabinet members shall:

1. be punctual at all times and on all occasions;
2. ensure that messages are not sent to them during meetings unless absolutely unavoidable, in order to not disturb the proceedings of Cabinet and its committees;
3. not use mobile phones during Cabinet meetings;
4. come to meetings fully briefed and well prepared; if a Cabinet member wishes to make use of statistics, reports or other information, this information should be submitted to the Cabinet Office for circulation to other Cabinet members prior to the deadlines set in section 7.1.
5. comply with the seating plan determined by the Prime Minister; if a member is unsure of the seating arrangements, then clarification may be sought from the Secretary to the Cabinet;
6. avoid ‘side conversations’ and passing notes to others present, which can be distracting and may arouse suspicion of collusion; if a member has to provide a note to another participant then he or she should get up and take it to the intended recipient;
7. not waste the meeting’s time by asking a question that has already been asked;
8. stay alert at all times during meetings; sleep should be avoided as it may suggest a lack of interest or respect; and
9. come prepared to attend the entire meeting; as noted in section 8.2 Cabinet meetings take precedence over all other meetings or activities and members should leave only when the meeting is adjourned, unless it is absolutely necessary and the prior approval of the Chair has been obtained.

The proposing Minister will normally be invited to make a short presentation, focusing on:

1. Urgency of the proposal;
2. Key elements of the proposal;
3. Any significant policy, fiscal, legal or human resource impacts; and
4. Substantive comments from other Ministries.

Any PowerPoint presentations should be provided to the Secretariat before the meeting to enable them to be loaded and be available without wasting the time of other Ministers. Ministries should ensure that PowerPoint presentations are short, focused, and comply with any guidelines issued by the Cabinet Office from time to time.

Members may request permission from the Chair to speak on any matter but should keep their remarks short and focus on whether they agree or disagree with the submission and why. Members should not introduce any topic unrelated to the scheduled agenda item.

No member should speak without acknowledgement from the Chair. Only members of the Cabinet may participate in its deliberations.

The Chair will determine and summarize the consensus reached on each decision at the conclusion of the respective discussion.

The Cabinet Office is responsible for servicing all Cabinet and Sub-Committee meetings. Their duties include:

1. notifying Cabinet members of the date, time and location of meetings;
2. preparing the room;
3. arranging refreshments;
4. taking notes of the meetings; and
5. carrying urgent messages to Cabinet members during meetings.