The Cabinet of Malaysia (Malay: Jemaah Menteri Malaysia) is the executive branch of the Government of Malaysia. Led by the Prime Minister, the cabinet is a council of ministers who are accountable collectively to the Parliament. According to the Article 43 of the Federal Constitution, members of the Cabinet can only be selected from members of either houses of Parliament. Formally, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong appoints all Ministers on the advice of the Prime Minister. The constitution is amended by repealing the Clause (8) of Article 43, enabling a person who is a member of State Legislative Assembly to continue to serve even while serving as a minister or deputy minister in the cabinet. Ministers other than the Prime Minister shall hold office during the pleasure of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, unless the appointment of any Minister shall have been revoked by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong on the advice of the Prime Minister but any Minister may resign from office. In practice, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong is obliged to follow the advice of the Prime Minister on the appointment and dismissal of ministers.

Cabinet appointments

Members of the Cabinet must be members of either house of Parliament. Most ministers are appointed from the lower house, the Dewan Rakyat, although a few are appointed from the upper house, the Dewan Negara. The Prime Minister must be a member of the Dewan Rakyat. Although Deputy Ministers and Parliamentary Secretaries may be appointed to each portfolio, they are not included in the Cabinet. The Cabinet meets weekly, every Wednesday. After the position of Parliamentary Secretary was removed and partial live telecasts of Parliament proceedings began in 2008, Cabinet meetings were moved to Fridays whenever Parliament sat, so as to allow Ministers to personally answer questions during Question Time in Parliament.

Cabinet composition

The composition of the Cabinet, and the number of portfolios depends mainly on the wishes of the Prime Minister at the time. However, the post of Finance Minister was considered so important as to be a necessity, and as a result was incorporated by the Minister of Finance (Incorporation) Act 1957 (Act 375). The position of Deputy Prime Minister is one that exists by convention, and as a result a Prime Minister could theoretically form a Cabinet without a Deputy. Deputy ministers exist for each portfolio, although they are not considered members of the Cabinet. The position of Deputy Minister was created by constitutional amendment in 1960. The office of parliamentary secretary for each ministry exists but none were appointed after the 2008 Malaysian general election. Parliamentary secretaries were provided for by an amendment in 1963. Deputy ministers and parliamentary secretaries are also appointed from members of Parliament, and deputise for the ministers in government ministries and in Parliament respectively. An additional office, that of the Political Secretary, exists. Political Secretaries need not be members of Parliament. Before taking office, all members of the Cabinet, Deputy Ministers, Parliamentary Secretaries, and Political Secretaries take an oath of secrecy concerning the proceedings of the Cabinet.

Functions of cabinet

An outline of the functions of the Cabinet are as follows:

List of cabinets

23 cabinets have taken place in Malaysia since 1957 headed by nine Prime Ministers.

Current Cabinet

The current cabinet, led by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, succeeds the Ismail Sabri cabinet. Anwar formed his cabinet following the 2022 General Election. As of 12 December 2023, the makeup of the current Cabinet is as follows:

Inactive portfolios

Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security Ministry of Communications Ministry of Digital Ministry of Domestic Trade and Costs of Living Ministry of Economy Ministry of Energy Transition and Water Transformation Ministry of Entrepreneur Development and Co-operatives Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ministry of Finance Ministry of Home Affairs Ministry of Human Resources Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Ministry of Plantation Industries and Commodities Ministry of Rural and Regional Development Ministry of Science and Technology Ministry of Tourism Ministry of Local Government Development Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development Ministry of Works Ministry of Youth and Sports Ministry of Health Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Others