Each Ministry’s Permanent Secretary is responsible for ensuring the secure receipt, handling, distribution and storage of Cabinet documents. With support from the Ministry’s Cabinet Liaison Officer, the Permanent Secretary shall ensure that relevant extracts or summaries of decisions and other documents are circulated to those Ministry officials responsible for implementation, consistent with the need-to-know principle.

The Cabinet Office will provide guidance to Ministries as the e-Cabinet system is progressively introduced.

Reporting to the Permanent Secretary, the Cabinet Liaison Officer shall manage access to such documents and maintain the records specified in section 11.1.  All Cabinet documents, especially submissions and conclusions, should be stored in locked cabinets when not in use.

For each Cabinet document, a record must be kept of all officials within the Ministry and any other individuals who have had access to the document, with the date and signature of the person concerned. The covering folder should include a notice regarding the confidential nature of Cabinet documents and the penalties for unauthorized disclosure.

Apart from the original copying of draft submissions and final submission, Cabinet documents shall not be copied without the written authority of the Permanent Secretary, based on the need to know principle.

The Permanent Secretary is responsible for ensuring accurate records are maintained of access to and copying of Cabinet documents and complying with any detailed guidance issued by the Cabinet Office from time to time regarding management of Cabinet documents.