Former chief of staff Morgan McSweeney calls for rethink of ministers' quasi-judicial powers
Morgan McSweeney, who served as Keir Starmer's chief of staff until February 2026, has called for a rethink of the quasi-judicial powers given to cabinet ministers, according to The Guardian.
Quasi-judicial powers are decisions that ministers take in a way similar to a court, weighing individual cases against set rules rather than making a broad political choice. McSweeney made his remarks while speaking to the House of Lords constitution committee, a group of peers that examines constitutional questions. He cited the energy secretary's ability to approve future oil and gas fields as an example of such a power.
He said these quasi-judicial processes were stopping wider cabinet discussion, and input from the prime minister, on issues of national importance. Ed Miliband had a role in determining the future of the Rosebank and Jackdaw oil and gas fields, a decision later passed to his successor as energy secretary, Miatta Fahnbulleh. Steve Reed, as housing and local government secretary, had the power to decide whether to approve a new Chinese super-embassy in east London.
McSweeney called for the thicket of rules about how the prime minister operates to be cleared away. He cited advice given to Starmer not to issue letters to cabinet ministers setting out priorities and asking for progress updates, which he said went against convention. Convention here means an established practice that is followed without being written into law. He also suggested that the prime minister's powers should be codified, meaning written down in a single, formal document.
McSweeney's own departure from Downing Street came in February, when he quit as chief of staff over his closeness to the decision to appoint Peter Mandelson as US ambassador.
