Privy Counsellors

I've recently been asked questions, to which the answer is "Privy Counsellors". (see the post on 5th November - "who is entitled to sit on the steps of the Throne in the House of Lords?"; and the other question is "who is referred to as as "Right Honourable?").

So what is a Privy Councillor? The immediate answer is "a member of the Privy Council". Senior Ministers (and often senior backbenchers - such as long standing Chairs of select committees) are given membership. There is also the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council which is the court of final appeal for the UK overseas territories and Crown dependencies, and for those Commonwealth countries that have retained the appeal to Her Majesty in Council or, in the case of Republics, to the Judicial Committee.


There is an excellent description of the Privy Council; its history and its membership at http://privycouncil.independent.gov.uk/privy-council/privy-council-members/

The Role of Privy Counsellors

There was a fascinating Question for Short Debate this week on the role of Privy Counsellors. I recommend reading the Hansard for the debate. It is both interesting and amusing. http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200809/ldhansrd/text/90512-0013.htm#09051274000144

Privy Counsellors are "Right Honourable", rather than merely "Honourable". As one writer put it "The Privy Council was formerly a powerful institution, but its substantial decisions are now controlled by one of its committees, the Cabinet. The Council also performs judicial functions, which are for the most part delegated to the Judicial Committee."

The debate covers the history and activity of this "Council". Further information is available in a House of Commons Library paper at http://www.parliament.uk/commons/lib/research/briefings/snpc-3708.pdf - and the Privy Council website is http://www.privy-council.org.uk/output/page1.asp