Magisterial Council of Castadilla

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Magisterial Council of Castadilla
Concilium Magisterium Castraediliae
Consejo Magistral de Castadilla
Kaunse Mestere des Kastetia
Overview
Established30 April 1996 (Constitution in effect)
StateCastadilla
LeaderPrime Minister of Castadilla
Appointed byCommander-in-Chief of Castadilla
Main organCabinet
Responsible toCongress of the Commons
HeadquartersEl Quexigal del Rincon, Rincon, Federal District

The Magisterial Council of Castadilla (Latin: Concilium Magisterium Castraediliae; Pelaxian: Consejo Magistral de Castadilla; Reform Tainean: Kaunse Mestere des Kastetia), officially the Magisterial Council of the Most Serene Sovereignty of Castadilla (Latin: Consilium Magisterium Serenissima Dominatio Castraediliae; Pelaxian: Consejo Magistral de la Serenísima Soberanía Castadilla; Reform Tainean: Kaunse Mestere des Serenisim Sauberanetas des Kastetia), exercises executive power in Castadilla. It is composed of the prime minister, who is the head of government, as well as both senior and junior ministers. The Cabinet, the main executive organ of the magisterial council, was established in the Constitution in 1996. It members meet weekly at the Residence of the Edifier in Santa Maria. The meetings are presided over by the Commander-in-Chief, the chief executive, although the officeholder is not a member of the magisterial council.

The magisterial council's most senior members are titled as ministers of state (Ministri Civitatis; Ministros de Estado; Ministres des Estato), followed in protocol order by ministers (ministri; ministros; ministres), ministers delegate (ministri delegati; ministros delegados; ministres delegan), whereas junior ministers are titled as secretaries of state (secretariis civitatis; secretarios de estado; sekretaris des estato). All members of the magisterial council, who are appointed by the Commander-in-Chief following the recommendation of the Prime Minister, are responsible to the Congress of the Commons, the lower house of the National Assembly of Castadilla. Cases of ministerial misconduct are tried before the National Court of Justice.

Composition and formation

All members of the Castadillaan magisterial council are appointed by the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces on the advice of the prime minister. Members of the magisterial council are ranked in a precise order, which is established at the time of magisterial council formation. In this hierarchy, the prime minister is the head of government. They are appointed by the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. While the commander-in-chief is, according to the Constitution, free to appoint whomever they like, in practice, they must nominate a candidate that reflects the will of the majority of the Congress of the Commons, as the magisterial council relies on the confidence of the National Assembly. After being nominated to lead a magisterial council, the prime minister nominee must propose a list of ministers to the commander-in-chief. The commander-in-chief can either accept or reject these proposed ministers. Ministers are ranked by importance:

  • Ministers of state (Latin: Ministri Civitatis; Pelaxian: Ministros de Estado; Reform Tainean: Ministres des Estato) are senior members of the Cabinet. It is an honourary rank, granted to some Ministers as a sign of prestige.
  • Ministers (Latin: Ministri; Pelaxian: Ministros; Reform Tainean: Ministres) are senior ministers and are members of the Cabinet. They lead magisterial council ministries.
  • Secretaries of state (Latin: Secretariis civitatis; Pelaxian: Secretarios de estado; Reform Tainean: Sekretaris des estato) are junior members. This is the lowest rank in the Castadillaan ministerial hierarchy. Secretaries work directly under a minister, or sometimes directly under the prime minister. While the Cabinet does not include secretaries of state as members, secretaries may attend meetings of the Cabinet if their portfolio is up for discussion.

Functions

According to the Constitution of Castadilla, the magisterial council directs and decides the policy of the nation. In practice, the magisterial council writes bills to be introduced to the National Assembly, and also writes and issues decrees. All political decisions made by the magisterial council must be registered in the government gazette.

Cabinet

The Cabinet (Latin: Capanna; Pelaxian: Gabinete; Reform Tainean: Kabine) is established by the Constitution. It is composed only of the senior ministers, though some secretaries of state may attend Cabinet meetings. The Cabinet is chaired by the commander-in-chief, unlike the magisterial council, but is still led by the prime minister, who was officially titled as the president of the Supreme Ministerial Council (Pelaxian: Presidente del Consejo Ministerial Supremo) during the Delepasian era.

All bills and some decrees must be approved by the Cabinet. Furthermore, it is the Cabinet that defines the collective political and policy direction of the magisterial council, and takes steps to implement that direction. In addition to writing and implementing policy, the magisterial council is responsible for national defense, and directs the actions of the Castadillaan Imperial Armed Forces. The workings of the magisterial council of Castadilla are based on the principle of collegiality.

Meetings of the Cabinet take place every Wednesday morning at the Residence of the Edifier. They are presided over by the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces, who promotes solidarity and collegiality amongst magisterial council ministers. These meetings follow a set format. In the first part of the meeting, the Cabinet deliberates over general interest bills, ordinances, and decrees. In the second part, the Cabinet discusses individual decisions by each minister regarding the appointment of senior civil servants. In the third part, usually, either one minister will give a presentation about some reform or project that they are directing, or the commander-in-chief will ask for advice on some subject from the ministers. In addition, the minister of foreign affairs provides the Cabinet with weekly updates on important international issues.

Ministries

Most work done within the magisterial council, however, are done elsewhere. Much of it is done by each individual ministry, under the direction of the minister responsible for that ministry. Ministers each have their own staff, called a "ministerial cabinet" (Latin: Capanna ministeriale; Pelaxian: Gabinete Ministerial; Reform Tainean: Kabine des Ministres). Each ministerial cabinet consists of around ten to twenty members, who are political appointees. Cabinet members assist the minister in running a ministry. Members of ministerial cabinets are powerful figures within the magisterial council and work in both the political and administrative spheres. The hierarchy in each ministerial cabinet is determined by the Minister. Working groups consisting of representatives from several ministries are commonplace. It is the duty of the prime minister to oversee these inter-ministry meetings and to ensure that work done within the magisterial council is done effectively and efficiently. All ministerial cabinet decisions must be co-signed by the prime minister. Any decree must also seek the prime minister's advice as well.

Budget

The magisterial council is responsible for the economic and financial policy of the Castadillaan State, must authorise all expenditures made by each ministry, and also manage all revenue. Expenditures are made through what is called a "finance law" (Latin: legem oeconomicis; Pelaxian: ley financiera; Reform Tainean: laua des finansaus), which is equivalent to an appropriation bill. Each minister must prepare a list of requests for funds annually, and submit it to the Budget Ministry. This ministry decides whether to grant or deny requests for funding by ministers. The ministry also calculates the state budget for the coming year. The National Assembly must vote on all applications of finance law.

Separation of powers

Members of the Castadillaan magisterial council cannot any position of occupational or trade leadership at the national level, any public employment, or any professional activity. These restrictions are in place to alleviate external pressure and influence on ministers, and to enable them to focus on their governmental work. Despite these restrictions, members of the magisterial council are still allowed to keep local elected positions, such as those of city mayor or regional legislator, though this practice has been discouraged more and more with each passing year. Whilst the Constitution of Castadilla does not prohibit ministers from being the leader of a political party, it is customary that ministers should not occupy such a post.

The magisterial council is responsible to the Castadillaan National Assembly. In particular, the magisterial council must assume responsibility for its actions before the Congress of the Commons, and the Congress of the Commons can dismiss the magisterial council with a motion of censure. The magisterial council cannot function during the tenure of an acting commander-in-chief, as that position is granted to a senior member of the Imperial Family, who is constitutionally barred from taking advantage of such an authority and thus would be compromising separation of powers if they tried to do such a thing. If the magisterial council decides to launch an armed operation with a duration of longer than four months, it must first consult the National Assembly and request an authorisation. The Prime Minister may convene the National Assembly for extraordinary sessions, or add additional sitting days to the legilsative calendar.

Current magisterial council

Main article: Ninth Carvalho magisterial council

Ministries

The names of ministries change often in Castadilla. This is a list of current ministries:

See also

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