In Albania, "Minister without portfolio" are considered members of the government who generally are not in charge of a special department, do not have headquarters or offices and usually do not have administration or staff.
[3] The most recent minister without portfolio is from the Interim government of Bangladesh, Mahfuz Alam who is also an adviser to the chief adviser The Constitution determines that the Ministries (and also other bodies headed by a Minister of State) are provided for by law, so the Federal Government has less freedom to create and reformulate portfolios as it happens in other cabinets.
The reorganization of federal public administration in 1967[5] provided for the appointment of up to four Extraordinary Ministers to perform temporary duties of a relevant nature.
Currently, the legislation requires that the Coordinator of the Government Transition Cabinet (the team of the candidate elected to the office of President of the Republic) be appointed as an Extraordinary Minister if the nominee is a Senator or a Federal Deputy.
[6] While the minister without portfolio is seen by some as a mere sinecure appointment, it has been a role that numerous political notables have played over time, including future Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, who filled the role in a Pearson cabinet in the 1960s; John Turner also "kept a seat warm" in a Pearson cabinet.
Carr had previously served as a cabinet minister until November 2019, leaving as a consequence of his diagnosis with multiple myeloma.
The three other holders of this title had joined the cabinet a few days before – Aksel Larsen (Communist Party of Denmark), Kr.
A notable exception occurred in the course of German reunification when four members of East Germany's last government were made "Minister for Special Affairs" from October 3, 1990, to January 1991.
Previously, the term had been used to describe Prime Ministers who had not undertaken any secondary Ministerial position (e.g. Ministry of Foreign Affairs).
The Ministry of Special Affairs was dissolved on 1 October 1997, following the inauguration of next-term's parliament and the appointment of Harmoko as its speaker.
McEntee remained a member of the coalition government as minister without portfolio,[27] and was reassigned to the Department of Justice on 1 November 2021.
[28] On 25 November 2022, Heather Humphreys was again appointed as Minister for Justice to facilitate a second period of six months' maternity leave from December.
In the second Balkenende cabinet there were three ministers without portfolio: Agnes van Ardenne (Development Cooperation), Rita Verdonk (Integration and Immigration) and Alexander Pechtold (Government Reform and Kingdom Relations).
The second Rutte cabinet had two ministers without portfolio: Stef Blok (Housing and the Central Government Sector) and Lilianne Ploumen (Development Cooperation).
The third Rutte cabinet had four ministers without portfolio: Sigrid Kaag (Development Cooperation), Sander Dekker (Legal Protection), Martin van Rijn (Medical Care), and Arie Slob (Primary and Secondary Education and Media).
The fourth Rutte cabinet has eight ministers without portfolio: Carola Schouten (Poverty, Participation and Pensions), Liesje Schreinemacher (Development Cooperation), Rob Jetten (Climate and Energy), Conny Helder (Long-Term healthcare and Sport), Christianne van der Wal (Nature and Nitrogen reduction), Franc Weerwind (Legal Protection), Hugo de Jonge (Housing and Urban Development), and Dennis Wiersma (Primary and Secondary Education and Media).
They were appointed to the upper house and made a "minister without portfolio" to add them to the cabinet although neither were elected to a seat in Parliament.
In the event that there are Ministers without a portfolio, the scope of their powers, the administrative structure, as well as the material and personal resources attached to it will be determined by Royal Decree.
As of 2024[update], they are:[42] President Jakaya Kikwete appointed Professor Mark Mwandosya as a minister without portfolio in 2012.
Similar situations apply (or applied) for the Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, the Trade Representative, Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, National Security Advisor, Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy.
An individual who has great influence on government affairs without holding formal office might be described as a "minister without portfolio".
[45] Herbert Hoover, the Secretary of Commerce under presidents Harding and Coolidge, took the position on the understanding that he would have input on all matters pertaining to the economy.
"[46] In the first government of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam founded by Hồ Chí Minh after the August Revolution in September 1945, Cù Huy Cận and Nguyễn Văn Xuân were assigned the "Minister without Portfolio" positions.
[47] In January 1946, the "Provisional Coalition Government" was installed, and Nguyen Van Xuan retained the post of Minister without Portfolio while Cu Huy Can was elevated to the Ministry of Agriculture.
[49] Since the 1954 Geneva Convention, the position has been vacant, except briefly during the 1960–1964 cabinet elected by the 2nd National Assembly, where Lê Văn Hiến occupied the post "Minister without Portfolio and Deputy Chair of the State Planning Commission.