“The most eminent group of state advisers to the monarch.”
Jonathan Aitken, who resigned from the Privy Council on 26 June 1997

First and foremost, the Privy Council is a body of advisers to the monarch, made up primarily of current or former politicians, members of either the House of Lords or the House of Commons. Proclamations and ‘Orders in Council’, which have the force of law, are most used to regulate certain institutions; they are formally enacted by the King, “with the advice of His Majesty’s Privy Council”. The Council also advises the monarch on the issuing of royal charters, which grant special status to incorporated bodies, cities and boroughs.

There are several committees of the Privy Council, most notably the Judicial Committee, made up of Supreme Court Justices and senior judiciary from Britain and the Commonwealth, which hears appeals from some independent Commonwealth countries and well as Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories. It also rules on disputes, ranging from disagreements over the inheritance of hereditary titles and intellectual copyright questions, to the validity of elections or commercial jurisdictions. On the domestic front, the JCPC’s remit includes disciplinary appeals for vets, parish boundary disputes, and even the distribution of bounty following the capture of a foreign ship (not invoked since the Second World War).

A Long History

It is an institution with roots in the distant past, specifically the curia regis (Royal court) of the Norman monarchs, which brought together magnates, ecclesiastics and high officials and concerned itself with legislation, administration and justice. In time, these areas of Government acquired their own institutions, but the Council still retained the power to hear judicial appeals. When it came to enacting new legislation, the advice of the Council to the monarch was accepted as valid, and the Council could be used to circumvent Parliament. This meant that, at times, the Council wielded great power; during the 15th century the Court of Star Chamber, effectively a committee of the Council, could hand down serious penalties (with the exception of the death penalty) without being bound by court procedure. Reforms to the Council, in particular by Thomas Cromwell, curtailed its powers, restoring Parliament’s pre-eminence.

Nonetheless, the English Civil War led to the temporary abolition of the Council and the creation of a Council of State, elected by the House of Commons, which directed administrative policy. Oliver Cromwell, the Lord Protector, headed the Council and as his powers grew the Council was increasingly dominated by him and became known as the ‘Protector’s Privy Council’.

The monarchy was restored in 1660 and Charles II reinstated the Royal Privy Council, although he ­ and subsequent monarchs, placed greater dependence on a small, inner circle of advisers. Following the formation of the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707, the Privy Councils of England and Scotland were merged, and a period ensued when power was invested in small committees of the Council, which met in the absence of the sovereign and communicated their decision to him – the nucleus of the modern-day Cabinet. Following the creation of the United Kingdom in 1801, a single Privy Council for Great Britain and Ireland was established.

How Does it Work?

Privy counsellors are appointed for life by the Crown, on the advice of the prime minister. They include the Lord Chancellor, all members of the cabinet, some senior members of the Royal Family, senior judges, the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, the Bishop of London, the Speaker of the House of Commons, leaders of opposition parties and leading Commonwealth spokesmen and judges. The Lord President of the Council is usually a senior member of the cabinet.

Most of the business of the Privy Council is transacted in discussion and correspondence between its ministerial members and the government departments that advise them. Privy Council meetings take place, on average, once a month, and are summoned by the Lord President of the Council. Only those counsellors who are summoned, typically cabinet ministers, attend (usually three or four), and the Clerk of the Privy Council is also present to authenticate the monarch’s assent. The King presides over the meeting, where all remain standing.

By law, ‘Counsellors of State’ include the monarch’s spouse and the four people next in the line of succession, providing they are aged over 21. They are authorised to carry out most of the duties of the Sovereign, although they are not deputised to deal with Commonwealth matters, the dissolution of Parliament, the creation of peers, or the appointment of the prime minister. A ‘Council’ is a meeting of the Privy Council that is attended by the monarch or Counsellors of State, otherwise it is referred to as a Committee.

There are currently over 700 members of the Privy Council, an exceptionally high number that reflects a tumultuous period of Government, with short-lived prime ministers (Liz Truss’s tenure lasted for just 49 days), leadership battles in the ruling Conservative party and repeated cabinet reshuffles. Michelle Donelan served as Secretary of State for Education from 5–7 July 2022. She resigned as a minister within 36 hours of receiving office, but her appointment to the Privy Council remains for life, and she is still able to use the ‘Right Honourable’ prefix.

Is it Really for Life?

Although appointment to the Privy Council is for life, it is possible – though rare – for the monarch to strike individuals off for malfeasance.

Queen Victoria’s second son, Alfred, inherited the dukedom of Saxe-Coburg Gotha, but was dismayed by the dullness of Coburg and desperately missed Britain and his illustrious career in the Royal Navy, where he reached the rank of Admiral. Writing to the British Prime Minister, William Gladstone, he said: “I shall remain, certainly in spirit, a British subject.” But as the new Duke of Saxe-Coburg Gotha, he felt obliged to curtail his involvement in British public life, and so relinquished his place in the House of Lords and became the first person to voluntarily quit the Privy Council.

In the 20th century, four individuals have “requested to be removed”, in each case because of their own wrongdoing:

•John Profumo

The Secretary of State for War in Harold Macmillan’s Conservative cabinet. In 1963 he tried to cover up his affair with Christine Keeler, a 19-year-old former model, who counted a Russian naval attaché amongst her lovers. The affair caused a national scandal because it was perceived to carry a risk to national security. Lord Hailsham, the minister responsible to the Privy Council, said that it was ‘intolerable’ that the minister had “lied to his family, lied to his friends, lied to his solicitor, lied to the House of Commons”. Profumo, who had resigned from the House of Commons, wrote to the Prime Minister: “I am quite clear I can no longer remain a privy counsellor – but how to divest myself of this cherished honour, I do not know.” His request to be removed from the list was accepted shortly afterwards.

•John Stonehouse

A Labour MP from 1957–74, who rose to become Postmaster General and Minister of Posts and Telecommunications. Stonehouse allegedly began spying for Czechoslovakia in 1962. He became deeply disillusioned with political life, describing MPs as: “voting on issues which they did not bother to understand after debates to which they had not bothered to listen.” After two botched attempts, Stonehouse faked his own death on 20 November 1974, leaving his clothes on a beach in Miami, which led the authorities to believe he had drowned. In fact, he was in Australia, hoping to set up a new life with his mistress and secretary, Sheila Buckley. Within two months the police had arrested him in Melbourne and, using his position as a privy counsellor, he unsuccessfully petitioned the Queen, protesting that he was innocent. After he was extradited and convicted on charges of theft and forgery, he resigned from the Privy Council on 9 August 1976.

•Jonathan Aitken

A Conservative Minister of State for Defence Procurement, appointed in 1992. Aitken was accused of violating ministerial rules when he allowed an Arab businessman to pay for his stay in the Paris Ritz. On 10 April 1995, the Guardian led with a front-page story revealing Aitken’s dealings with the Saudis. Aitken denounced the claims, with the famous protestation: “If it falls to me to start a fight to cut out the cancer of bent and twisted journalism in our country with the simple sword of truth and the trusty shield of British fair play, so be it.” He fought a libel case, which collapsed, and faced charges of perjury. At this point he recognised that he could not retain his title of ‘Right Honourable’ and he resigned from the Privy Council on 26 June 1997.

•Chris Huhne

The Liberal Democrat Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change from 2010­–12. His downfall came on 3 February 2012, when he was charged with perverting the course of justice in 2003 over a speeding offence and he resigned from the Cabinet. It emerged that, although he was driving the car, he had persuaded his wife Vicky Pryce to falsely claim that she was the driver so that she could accept the penalty points on her licence, thereby preventing him from being banned for driving. At first, he denied the charge, but shortly before his trial, on 4 February 2013, he pleaded guilty, and at that point he resigned from both Parliament and the Privy Council.

Forms of Address

Privy Counsellors have the prefix ‘The Rt Hon’ before their names. If the privy counsellor is male, ‘Mr’ is dispensed with, but if he is also a knight, his correct style address would be ‘The Rt Hon Sir Keir Starmer’. If 'The Rt Hon' is used as a prefix, there is no need to use the postnominal 'PC'.

If the privy counsellor is female ‘The Rt Hon’ replaces Mrs/Miss/Ms in her style of address; if she is also a dame, her style of address would be ‘The Rt Hon Dame Elizbeth Kean’.

Where the privy counsellor also has a professional title, such as Professor, the prefix ‘The Rt Hon’ precedes the professional title: 'The Rt Hon Prof Sir Lawrence Freedman'.

If the privy counsellor is a peer or peeress ‘The Rt Hon’ can be dispensed with but it is necessary to include the post nominal PC: ‘The Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton, PC’ or ‘The Baroness May of Maidenhead, PC’.

As membership of the Privy Council is an appointment rather than an honour conferred, the letters PC follow all honours and decorations awarded by the Crown.

Click here for Debrett’s list of all the current Privy Counsellors, with their individual forms of address.

Top: Caricature by Thomas Rowlandson titled 'Privy Council of a King' (1815) and featuring George IV, then Prince Regent.