8. Cabinet documents, including submissions, are subject to a strict confidentiality regime.
9. The CabNet+ system, managed by Cabinet Division, supports the confidential preparation, circulation and lodgement of Cabinet documents, including submissions and briefing material.
Joint submissions
10. The Prime Minister or the Cabinet may decide that submissions dealing with some subjects should always be prepared by a particular minister or jointly. For example, all matters involving taxation are required to be brought forward by the Treasurer or, where another portfolio minister has a significant interest, by the Treasurer and that minister.
11. Joint submissions require the sponsoring ministers to agree the text of the submission. It is highly desirable that they agree the recommendations, but where this is not possible ministers should indicate those recommendations on which they agree and should specify their divergent recommendations.
12. In addition, joint submissions will also be required for major and sensitive proposals with significant service delivery components delivered by another agency. At a minimum, all major and sensitive initiatives which have significant service delivery components will require joint submissions where responsibility for policy and implementation rests with different departments or agencies.
13. Although joint submissions are the joint responsibility of the ministers concerned, as a matter of practical administration there needs to be a clear understanding of who has the lead role in ensuring the work is undertaken and, in particular, which department will have responsibility for undertaking the mandatory consultation processes and lodging the submission with Cabinet Division.
Submissions prepared by one minister in consultation with others
14. Where the Prime Minister, the Cabinet or the Cabinet Secretary has asked a minister to prepare a submission in consultation with others, where a submission recommends action by ministers not signatories to it, or where matters directly affecting other ministers' portfolio responsibilities are raised, the sponsoring minister must provide the other ministers concerned a sufficient opportunity to contribute to the development of the submission. Consultation does not necessarily require agreement, but ministers should be consulted sufficiently early in the drafting process to enable their views to be taken into account and should be given sufficient time to enable them to make a considered input into the description of the problem and possible solutions.
Memorandums
15. Departments may from time to time be requested to provide information and options on a certain matter for the Cabinet's consideration. Such documentation is referred to as a memorandum. While there are a number of differences in style and format between a submission and a memorandum, the requirements in terms of brevity, analysis, consultation and confidentiality are the same.
Implementation analysis and planning
16. The Cabinet has instituted processes to ensure that implementation issues have been adequately addressed in submissions and memorandums, emphasising the importance of sound policy delivery.
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