The Lord President has a number of responsibilities including presiding over the Accession Council. The Council is usually convened as soon as practicable after the death of a Sovereign and is customarily held at St James’s Palace to make formal Proclamation of the death of the Monarch and the accession of the successor to the throne.

The Lord President is responsible for all business going before The King in Council and presides at Privy Council meetings. The Lord President is also responsible for consideration and approval for Statutory Orders concerning Health Care, Veterinary, and Scottish Higher Education matters; and, as a member of the Committee for the affairs of Jersey and Guernsey, provides recommendations to the King in Council of Channel Islands’ legislation. She also deals with Ministerial correspondence and Parliamentary Questions relating to Privy Council Business.