Briefing Papers for Incoming Ministers 2011

What is a BIM (Briefing to an Incoming Minister)?

When a new Minister is appointed, the chief executive of the department concerned must ensure that he or she is briefed on the department and the portfolio.

The briefing is for an incoming Minister only, and takes account of the Minister’s prior knowledge, and the Government’s priorities including coalition agreements and support arrangements. The government agency will think about how they are going to engage with the Minister over the term of the Government, and set the scene for this.

The briefing is confidential to the Minister, who usually (but not always) releases it publicly.

The briefing process should give the Minister a good understanding of:

the organisation and responsibilities of the agency concerned;
major policy, and implementation of current programmes;
initial actions and decisions the Minister will need to take; and
the Minister’s responsibilities, including details of boards, commissions, tribunals and similar entities.

The purpose of the initial briefing is to give new Ministers sufficient information to meet their initial requirements, but is not intended to be a detailed analysis of the portfolio or of policy issues.

BIM’s are a valuable guide to what government departments intend for the next three years. They often trigger additional questions from the public, including requests under the Official Information Act.

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