Page:Australian Government Cabinet Handbook 15th edition.pdf/43

 Amendments

11. A minister may disagree with the wording of a Cabinet minute and request that it be amended. Such a request is made in writing to the Cabinet Secretary. If it is agreed that the Cabinet minute does not accurately reflect the Cabinet outcome, an amended Cabinet minute may be issued. If there is a more fundamental dispute over the content of the Cabinet minute, the matter may need to be brought forward to the Cabinet for consideration.

Announcements

12. Sponsoring ministers should specifically consider if, when and how an agreed policy proposal should be made public and what factual material and analysis embodied in the submission might be made available to the public. Some government decisions are not made public.

13. Ministerial intentions regarding public release must be indicated in the recommendations of the submission, with a draft media release included as an attachment noting that any such announcement would refer to the decision of the Government, not of the Cabinet or one of the Cabinet Committees.

14. Where possible, any information on the proposed handling strategy for the media release should be incorporated in the submission. This might include the indicative timing of the release, whether it is expected to be issued jointly, involve a media event, or form part of a broader community engagement strategy or information campaign.

15. Generally, significant policy developments are announced first in the Parliament, if this is practicable. Likewise, and where possible, policy information papers announcing government policy (white papers) or public policy discussion papers (green papers) are first tabled in the Parliament.

16. No publicity is to be given to matters, including appointments where Federal Executive Council's approval is required before the council's action is complete, unless the Governor‐General's prior approval of an announcement has been obtained (see Federal Executive Council Handbook for further information). The Federal Executive Council Secretariat (located in Cabinet Division) will assist with advice and make any necessary arrangements in such cases.

17. Where premiers and chief ministers have to be informed, or other preliminary action arising from a Cabinet minute has to be taken, it is the responsibility of the portfolio minister to see that this has been finalised before an announcement is made.

Information campaigns

18. Submissions which propose government funded information campaigns must provide adequate information to enable the Cabinet to consider the cost‐effectiveness of proposed campaigns when considering the initial approval of new policy proposals, including justification for the proposed campaign, costs, target audiences, method and media, independent advice from the master media agency and any whole‐of‐government aspects.