Ministre lieutenant

In the Savamese imperial government, a ministre lieutenant (literally "minister lieutenant", but in this specific instance "minister in lieu of") is a position with vaguely-defined responsiblities depending directly from the Emperor of the Savamese. In the broader sense, a ministre lieutenant is an individual acting in lieu of the Emperor in any capacity specified by the Emperor at the time of appointment; the Emperor has complete discretion on whom to appoint and the scope of the minister's powers—as long as those powers remain within the confines of the Emperor's constitutional powers over the federal government.

The principal use of ministres lieutenant is in connection with the opening of sessions of the Assembly of Commons, which require the presence of the Emperor or their representative. It is customary for the Emperor to attend the opening of the first session after a legislative election, then to delegate to a ministre lieutenant for the rest of the legislature.

Other uses are more atypical, but happen as and when needed. A notable example followed the Mert scandal in 1955 in the midst of the Gaste War, where Emperor Adrien II appointed his confidant Prince Amédée de Flessandre-Parloy as ministre lieutenant to exercise the temporary absolute powers given to him by Parliament enacting the clause discrétionnaire, which he wielded until Viscount Jules d'Aultey was sworn in as Viceroy following the Floridy 1955 snap run-off viceregal election.