Collective responsibility is a feature of the

Step 1: Analyze the question The question asks which system of government has collective responsibility as a feature.

Step 2: Explain the concept Collective responsibility (also called collective cabinet responsibility) means that all members of the cabinet share responsibility for the decisions and policies of the government. Once a decision is made, every minister must publicly support it, even if they personally disagreed in private. A minister who cannot support a decision is expected to resign. If the government loses a vote of no confidence in the legislature, the entire cabinet falls together.

Step 3: Apply it to each option

• A. Federal system: This describes how power is divided between central and regional governments. It says nothing about how the executive is held accountable, so it is not the answer.
• B. Presidential system: The president is both head of state and head of government. Ministers are appointed by the president and are individually responsible to him. The cabinet acts as advisers, so there is no collective responsibility.
• C. Parliamentary system: The cabinet is drawn from the legislature and is collectively answerable to parliament. The cabinet sinks or swims together. This fits the definition.
• D. Confederal system: This is a loose union of sovereign states with a weak central authority. It is about the distribution of power, not executive accountability.

Step 4: Answer The correct answer is C. parliamentary system.

Exam tip: Link the words to their systems:

• Collective responsibility → Parliamentary (the cabinet acts as a team)
• Separation of powers and individual responsibility of ministers → Presidential

Whenever you see "collective responsibility", "vote of no confidence", or "fusion of powers", think parliamentary.