Cabinet

Cabinet (or the Executive) is made up of the Leader of the Council (the political head of Hart) and other executive Members. Council elects the Leader of the Council at its first meeting of the year (called Annual Council). The Leader then appoints up to nine other 'executive' Members to assist him/her. The Leader can also allocate specific service responsibilities to these Members called 'Portfolios' for which they are individually responsible. A list of the members on Cabinet can be found under 'Council Meetings' on the home page.

Cabinet meets once a month and all Members of the Council can attend, if they wish. The Leader and Executive Members, either collectively in Cabinet or individually, can make 'executive' decisions that usually relate to the day-to-day running of the Council. Key decisions (affecting more than two wards in the district or involving a significant amount of funds) that are due to be made by the Cabinet are published in the Forward Plan in the Cabinet agenda (four months in advance).

Cabinet can also receive recommendations from the Scrutiny Committee. Cabinet's decisions are subject, however, to 'call-in' (please refer to the Scrutiny Committee page on the Index) by non-executive Members. The Cabinet meets in public and members of the public may with prior notice make statements at the meeting.