Cabinets and First Ministers

Paul G. Thomas is the Duff Roblin Professor of Government at the
University of Manitoba, the author of Parliamentary Reform Through
Political Parties, and the co-author of Canadian Public Administration:
Problematical Perspectives.

In six chapters, University of Toronto political science professor
Graham White examines the popular charge that power in the national,
provincial, and territorial governments is unduly concentrated in the
hands of prime ministers and, to a lesser extent, cabinets. In clear
prose and insightful analysis, he argues persuasively that the portrayal
of prime ministers as benign dictators is oversimplified and
exaggerated.

This is not to say that there are no democratic deficiencies in the
cabinet and central agency processes that shape most public-policy
initiatives. After setting forth the evaluation criteria in Chapter 1,
White provides an overview of the place of cabinets in the political
system; an examination of the argument that prime ministers can engage
in one-person rule; a look at the opportunities for public input into
cabinet deliberations; a discussion of the structures and processes for
cabinet decision-making; and a summary evaluation of how the cabinet
measures up on balance to democratic criteria. This last chapter
includes some valuable and politically feasible proposals for improving
democracy at the centre of government. Quotations from interviews with
ministers and public servants give us valuable glimpses into the
normally secretive world of decision-making in the inner circle and
enliven the analysis. The material on provincial and territorial
governments is particularly original. Summaries at the end of each
chapter and a series of questions for discussion at the close of the
book are especially helpful.