A sinecure ( / ˈ s ɪ n ɪ k j ʊər / or / ˈ s aɪ n ɪ k j ʊər / ; from the Latin sine , 'without', and cura , 'care') is a position with a salary or otherwise generating income that requires or involves little or no responsibility, labour, or active service. The term originated in the medieval church, where it signified a post without any responsibility for the " cure [care] of souls ", the regular liturgical and pastoral functions of a cleric , but came to be applied to any post, secular or ecclesiastical, that involved little or no actual work. Sinecures have historically provided a potent tool for governments or monarchs to distribute patronage , while recipients are able to store up titles and easy salaries.
23-841: A sinecure can also be given to an individual whose primary job is in another office, but requires a sinecure title to perform that job. For example, the Government House Leader in Canada is often given a sinecure ministry position so that they may become a member of the Cabinet . Similar examples are the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal and the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster , whose holders are ex officio members of
46-561: A ministry. Sections 11 and 12 of the act allow for the creation of a minister of state who "may be assigned by the Governor in Council to assist any minister or ministers having responsibilities for any department or other portion of the public service of Canada in the carrying out of those responsibilities". The latter has become far more common and, by and large, the former has fallen into disuse. Under Brian Mulroney and his successors,
69-513: A time, with the position having evolved into a full-time job, government house leaders have been named to cabinet as ministers of state with no portfolio specified. The Martin government created these positions so that the minister of state title is effectively invisible. An amendment to the Salaries Act made this unnecessary by listing the government house leader as a minister. Key: Minister of State (Canada) A minister of state
92-648: Is a junior cabinet minister in the Cabinet of Canada , usually given specific responsibilities to assist a senior cabinet minister in a specific area. A secretary of state also holds many similar responsibilities in assisting senior cabinet members, being members of the Ministry and the King's Privy Council for Canada . A secretary of state is legally a minister of state styled as secretaries. However, secretaries of state are considered junior to ministers of state and are not members of Cabinet. The title "Minister of State"
115-567: The Ecclesiastical Commissioners Act of 1840. Other ecclesiastical sinecures were certain cathedral dignities to which no spiritual functions attached or incumbencies where by reason of depopulation and the like, the parishioners disappeared or the parish church was allowed to decay. Such cases eventually ceased to exist. The term is also used of any office or place to which salary, emoluments , or dignity , but no duties, are attached. The British civil service and
138-694: The Privy Council and therefore may be given admitted to the Cabinet of the United Kingdom (which is formally the executive committee of the Privy Council). The minister without portfolio is a frequent example of this sinecure, often employed to give cabinet-level positions to enough members of all partners in a coalition government . Other sinecures operate as legal fictions , such as the British office of Crown Steward and Bailiff of
161-568: The Chiltern Hundreds , used as a legal excuse for resigning from Parliament . Sinecure , properly a term of ecclesiastical law for a benefice without the cure of souls , arose in the English Church when the rector had no cure of souls nor resided in the parish , the work of the incumbent being performed by a vicar . Such sinecure rectories were expressly granted by the patron. They were abolished by Parliament under
184-561: The Government in the House of Commons (Canada) The Government House Leader , officially known as the leader of the Government in the House of Commons of Canada ( French : leader du gouvernement à la Chambre des communes du Canada ), is the Cabinet minister responsible for planning and managing the government's legislative program in the House of Commons of Canada . Despite the name of
207-542: The House leadership to one of his ministers. In 1946, the position of government house leader was formally recognized. In 1968, Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau designated the government house leader as president of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada . Under Prime Minister Brian Mulroney , the roles of government house leader and president of the Privy Council were separated in 1989. Under Mulroney and his successors,
230-561: The head of Harper's transition team, noted to the press that this was intentional: ministers of state and the role of Deputy Prime Minister were omitted to create a cabinet of full equals. In actuality, Harper did appoint a number of ministers of state in order to give certain ministers responsibilities outside of their portfolios; however, all of these ministers of state were also full Cabinet ministers and their formal titles were styled so as to omit "of state". On January 4, 2007, Harper added five secretaries of state to his ministry thus reviving
253-549: The law only so, in reality, he set up various ministries of state headed by ministers of state. All such ministries of state and their ministers were styled as proper ministers of permanent departments. Over the course of his government, most of these departments were created in law and the ministers of state became ministers of the new departments as their empowering legislation received royal assent . When Stephen Harper became Prime Minister on February 6, 2006, he did not include any ministers of state in his cabinet. Derek Burney ,
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#1732791159598276-460: The position it does not refer to the prime minister of Canada , who is the head of government . From 1867 until World War II , prime ministers took upon themselves the responsibilities of being leader of the government in the House of Commons, organizing and coordinating House of Commons business with the other parties. The expansion of government responsibilities during the war led to Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King deciding to delegate
299-405: The position of house leader would often be held by someone who was named a minister of state without any portfolio responsibilities specified. Since 2003, this minister of state status has been obscured in all but the most official circumstances by the use of a "Leader of the Government in the House of Commons" style in its place. Prime Minister Paul Martin 's first House Leader, Jacques Saada
322-510: The practice of appointing junior ministers outside of the Cabinet. On October 30, 2008, Harper added 11 ministers of state to his Cabinet. On January 4, 2011, Harper added one minister of state to his Cabinet to a total of 12. In 2015, the 29th cabinet led by Justin Trudeau , formed and updated several ministries including the formation of Minister of Sport and Persons with Disabilities from
345-779: The previous junior position Minister of State (Sport) . The Minister of State (Agriculture) ( French : Ministre d'État (Agriculture) ) was a junior minister in the Canadian Cabinet responsible for the Rural Secretariat and the Cooperatives Secretariat , reporting to the Minister of Agriculture . As of January 2016 , the position has not been a part of the Cabinet of Justin Trudeau . as Minister of State (Small Business and Tourism and Agriculture) Minister of State (Children and Youth)
368-427: The royal household, for example, were loaded with innumerable offices which, by lapse of time, had become sinecures and were only kept as the reward of political services or to secure voting power in parliament. They were prevalent in the 18th century, but were gradually abolished by statutes during that and the following centuries. Below is a list of extant sinecures by country. Christian churches: Leader of
391-453: The title "minister of state", with a specific policy responsibility, was usually given to either a Cabinet minister, in addition to his or her other responsibilities, or to the deputy prime minister , government house leader or leader of the government in the Senate . Chrétien also had parliamentary secretaries , ranking below secretaries of state, who were set to two-year terms and the post
414-502: The title of Minister of State without any responsibilities attached has been used to appoint what had previously been called ministers without portfolio . Ministers of State are also members of the King's Privy Council for Canada , as is required for them to be a part of the ministry. During the government of Jean Chrétien , assistants to senior cabinet ministers were often styled as secretary of state, considered junior to ministers of state, and were not members of Cabinet. Under Chrétien,
437-445: Was a Cabinet of Canada portfolio created in 2003 by Prime Minister Paul Martin to assist with the Minister of Human Resources Development . Ethel Blondin-Andrew was the first and only holder of this position, which lasted from 12 December 2003 until 19 July 2004. The Minister of State (Public Health) was a position in the government of Paul Martin that lasted from 12 December 2003 to 5 February 2006. Carolyn Bennett
460-510: Was also the minister responsible for democratic reform ; however, with the election of a minority government in the 2004 election , Martin appointed Tony Valeri to the position of leader of the government in the House of Commons with no additional responsibilities. Until 2005, the position of government house leader was not technically a cabinet-level post, but rather a parliamentary office, so to qualify for cabinet membership, an individual had to be named to cabinet in some other capacity. For
483-468: Was created during the government of Pierre Trudeau in 1971 under the Ministries and Ministers of State Act . This act allows for the creation of two different types of ministers of state. Sections 2 through 10 allow for the creation of a ministry of state, which is a temporary government department established by separating parts of departments created by law. A minister of state can be the head of such
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#1732791159598506-758: Was the first and only appointment to this position. As minister, Bennett was responsible for setting up the Public Health Agency of Canada . On 17 May 2004, Bennett announced a new position she called Chief Public Health Officer (CPHO), and that "the CPHO will be primarily located in Winnipeg , with offices in Ottawa , and will have responsibilities for the three key functions of the Agency: infectious diseases, emergency preparedness and chronic diseases." At
529-425: Was used as a reward for weary backbenchers. Their duty was to answer questions and table reports on behalf of ministers when they were unable to be present in the house. Paul Martin eliminated the position of secretary of state and reverted to using the title "minister of state" for junior cabinet ministers. The day he took office, Martin realigned various government departments. However, this can be done by changing
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