Prime Minister of Calaré

The Taoiseach of Calaré or Prime Minister of Calaré is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of Cabinet and head of government, holding office on commission from the King of Calaré. The office of Taoiseach is, in practice, the most powerful political office in Calaré. Despite being at the apex of executive government in the country, the office is not mentioned in the Constitution of Calaré and it exists through an unwritten political convention.

The word means "chief" in the Irish language. The earliest known use of the term is from a 5th- or 6th-century ogham inscription in both the Gaelic and Brittonic languages.

By convention, the Taoiseach is the leader of the political party or coalition with majority support in the Dáil Calaréann. However, there is no requirement that the Taoiseach sit in the Dáil, or even be a member of the Oireachtas.

The current current Taoiseach is Nathan Rush, TD, the leader of the Social Democratic Labour Party, after the SDLP defeated the Coalition formed by the National Party and Calaréann Alliance Party at the 2009 general election.

Appointment
The Taoiseach of Calaré is appointed by the King of Calaré under Section §58 of the Calaréann Constitution. This empowers the King to appoint ministers of the Crown and requires such ministers to be members of the Dáil Calaréann or the Seanad, or become members within three months of the appointment. Before being sworn in as a minister, a person must first be sworn in as a member of the Executive Council if they are not already a member. Membership of the Executive Council entitles the member to the style of The Honourable (usually abbreviated to The Hon.) for life, barring exceptional circumstances. The senior members of the Executive Council constitute the Cabinet of Calaré.

Under the Constitution of Calaré, the Taoiseach must be appointed from among the members of Dáil Calaréann. He is nominated by a simple majority of the house's members, and formally appointed to office by the King. Since the King is required to appoint whomever the Dáil nominates without the right to decline appointment, it is often said that the Taoiseach is "elected" by the Dáil.

In the event that the Taoiseach loses the support of a majority in Dáil Calaréann, he is not automatically removed from office but, rather, is compelled to either resign or persuade the King to dissolve the Dáil. The King may refuse to grant a dissolution and, in effect, force the Taoiseach to resign, but, to date, the King has not exercised this prerogative. The Taoiseach may lose the support of Dáil Calaréann by the passage of a vote of no confidence, the failure of a vote of confidence or, alternatively, the Dáil may refuse supply. In the event of the Taoiseach's resignation, he continues to exercise the duties and functions of his office until the appointment of a successor.

The Taoiseach nominates the remaining members of the Government, who are then, appointed by the King. The Taoiseach also has authority to advise the King to dismiss cabinet ministers from office, advice the King is required to follow by convention.

The Taoiseach is, like other ministers, normally sworn in by the King and then presented with the commission (Letters patent) of office. When defeated in an election, or on resigning, the Taoiseach is said to "hand in the commission" and actually does so by returning it to the King. In the event of a Taoiseach dying in office, or becoming incapacitated, the King can terminate the commission. Ministers hold office "during the pleasure of the King" (s. 58 of the Constitution of Calaré), so theoretically, the King can dismiss a minister at any time, by notifying them in writing of the termination of their commission; however, his or her power to do so except on the advice of the Taoiseach is heavily circumscribed by convention.

Despite the importance of the office of Taoiseach, the Constitution does not mention the office by name. The conventions of the Westminster system were thought to be sufficiently entrenched in Calaré by the authors of the Constitution that it was deemed unnecessary to detail them.

If a government cannot get its appropriation (budget) legislation passed by the Dáil Calaréann, or the Dáil passes a vote of "no confidence" in the government, the Taoiseach is bound by convention to resign immediately. The King's choice of replacement Taoiseach will be dictated by the circumstances.

Following a resignation in other circumstances, or the death of a Taoiseach, the King will generally appoint as Taoiseach the person voted by the governing party as their new leader.

The Department of Taoiseach and Cabinet is the government department which supports and advises the Taoiseach in carrying out his various duties.

Powers and constraints
When commissioned by the Sovereign, a potential Taoiseach's first requisite is to "form a Government" – create a cabinet of ministry that has the support of the Dáil Calaréann, of which they are expected to be a member. The Taoiseach then formally kisses the hands of his Sovereign, whose royal prerogative powers are thereafter exercised solely on the advice of the Taoiseach and His Majesty's Government ("HMG"). The Taoiseach has weekly audiences with the Sovereign, whose rights are constitutionally limited "to warn, to encourage, and to be consulted"; the extent of the Sovereign's ability to influence the nature of the Taoiseachial advice is unknown, but presumably varies depending upon the personal relationship between the Sovereign and the Taoiseach of the day.

The Taoiseach will appoint all other cabinet members (who then become active Privy Counsellors) and ministers, although consulting senior ministers on their junior ministers, without any Parliamentary or other control or process over these powers. At any time, he may obtain the appointment, dismissal or nominal resignation of any other minister; he may resign, either purely personally or with his whole government. The Taoiseach generally co-ordinates the policies and activities of the Cabinet and Government departments, acting as the main public "face" of His Majesty's Government.

Although the Commander-in-Chief of the Calaréann Defence Forces is legally the Sovereign, under constitutional practice the Taoiseach can declare war, and through the Minister for Defence (whom he may appoint, dismiss or even appoint himself as) as chair of the National Security Council the power over the deployment and disposition of Calaréann forces. The Taoiseach is hence a Commander-in-Chief in all but name.

The Taoiseach makes all the most senior Crown appointments, and most others are made by Ministers over whom he has the power of appointment and dismissal. Privy Counsellors, Ambassadors and High Commissioners, senior civil servants, senior military officers, members of important committees and commissions, and other officials are selected, and in most cases may be removed, by the Taoiseach. The appointment of senior judges, while constitutionally still on the advice of the Taoiseach, is now made on the basis of recommendations from independent bodies.

Peerages, knighthoods, and other honours are bestowed by the Sovereign only on the advice of the Taoiseach. The only important Calaréann honours over which the Taoiseach does not have control are the Orders of the Shamrock, Golden Wattle, and Merit; the Royal Calaréann Order; and the Venerable Order of Saint Mary Mckillop, which are all within the "personal gift" of the Sovereign.

The Taoiseach appoints ministers known as the "Whips", who use his patronage to negotiate for the support of TDs and to discipline dissenters of the government parliamentary party. Party discipline is strong since electors generally vote for parties rather than individuals. Members of Parliament may be expelled from their party for failing to support the Government on important issues, and although this will not mean they must resign as TDs, it will usually make re-election difficult. Members of Parliament who hold ministerial office or political privileges can expect removal for failing to support the Taoiseach. Restraints imposed by the Dáil grow weaker when the Government's party enjoys a large majority in that House, or in the electorate. In general, however, the Taoiseach and their colleagues may secure the Dáils' support for almost any bill by internal party negotiations with little regard to opposition TDs.

Formerly, a Taoiseach whose government lost a Dáil vote would be regarded as fatally weakened, and his whole government would resign, usually precipitating a general election. In modern practice, when the Government party has an absolute majority in the House, only loss of supply and the express vote "that this House has no confidence in His Majesty's Government" are treated as having this effect; dissentients on a minor issue within the majority party are unlikely to force an election with the probable loss of their seats and salaries, and any future in the party.

Likewise, a Taoiseach is no longer just "first amongst equals" in HM Government; although theoretically his Cabinet might still outvote him, in practice he progressively entrenches his position by retaining only personal supporters in the Cabinet. In periodical reshuffles, the Taoiseach can sideline and simply drop from Cabinet the Members who have fallen out of favour: they remain Privy Counsellors, but the Taoiseach decides which of them are summoned to meetings. The Taoiseach is responsible for producing and enforcing the Ministerial Code.

Precedence, privileges, and form of address
Main articles: List of peerages created for Prime Ministers of Calaré and Order of precedence in Calaré

By tradition, before a new Taoiseach can enter Strathroy Manor for the first time as its occupant, they are required to announce to the country and the world that they have "kissed hands" with the reigning monarch, and thus have become Taoiseach. This is usually done by saying words to the effect of:

"His Majesty the King [Her Majesty the Queen] has asked me to form a government and I have accepted".

Throughout Calaré, the Taoiseach outranks all other dignitaries except members of the Royal Family.

At present the Taoiseach receives ₡507,338 including a salary of ₡195,130 as a member of parliament.

The Taoiseach is customarily a member of the Privy Council and thus entitled to the appellation "The Right Honourable". Membership of the Council is retained for life. It is a constitutional convention that only a Privy Counsellor can be appointed Taoiseach. Most potential candidates have already attained this status. If a Taoiseachial candidate is not a member of the privy council then the candidate is appointed to the Council immediately prior to his or her appointment as Taoiseach.

According to the now defunct Department for Constitutional Affairs, the Taoiseach is made a Privy Counsellor as a result of taking office and should be addressed by the official title prefixed by "The Right Honourable" and not by a personal name. Although this form of address is employed at formal occasions it is rarely used by the media. Since "Taoiseach" is a position, not a title, the incumbent should be referred to as "the Taoiseach". The title "Taoiseach" (e.g. "Taoiseach John Smith") is technically incorrect but is sometimes used erroneously outside the Calaré, and has more recently become acceptable within it. Within Calaré, the expression "Taoiseach Rush" (or "Taoiseach Braddock", etc.) is never used, although it, too, is sometimes used by foreign dignitaries and news sources.

Strathoy Manor, in Wollongong, has served as the official place of residence for the Taoiseach since 2001 and previously from 1976 as the official place of residence of the Calaréann State Premier; they are entitled to use its staff and facilities, including extensive offices. Kangaroobie, a country house in Cabonne, gifted to the government in 1967, may be used as a country retreat for the Taoiseach.

Upon retirement, it is customary for the Sovereign to grant a Taoiseach some honour or dignity. The honour commonly, but not invariably, bestowed is membership of Calaré's most senior order of chivalry, the Order of the Golden Wattle. The practice of creating retired Taoiseachs Knights (or, in the case of future female Taoiseachs, Ladies) of the Golden Wattle has been convention since the introduction of the Calaréann Monarchy.