The Mikhail Mishustin Cabinet is the current federal government of Russia, led by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin. It formed from 16 to 21 January 2020. This Cabinet was the last formed before the constitutional reform, which in particular significantly changed the order of formation of the government. On 30 April 2020 Mishustin tested positive for COVID-19. Mishustin confirmed his test results in a video conference with President Vladimir Putin, and nominated his deputy to take over for him as acting Prime Minister. Putin signed a decree appointing Andrey Belousov to the role on an acting basis, following Mishustin's recommendation. In May, three more ministers also tested positive for coronavirus and were temporarily replaced by their deputies.
Formation
The government began to form after the resignation of Dmitry Medvedev's cabinet on 15 January 2020. Medvedev resigned after President Vladimir Putin, during his Address to the Federal Assembly, proposed amendments to the Constitution that would change the balance of power. On the same day, Putin offered Mishustin the post of Prime Minister. After Mishustin's consent, Putin nominated him for approval to the State Duma. According to Putin, he was offered four candidates, but Mishustin was not among them. As a result, Putin independently decided to nominate Mishustin for the Prime Minister. On 16 January, after a meeting with Mishustin, United Russia decided to support him. Since United Russia has more than half of the seats in the State Duma, this means that Mishustin would become Prime Minister, even if all other parties voted against it. The Liberal Democratic Party and A Just Russia also expressed support for Mishustin. The Communist Party, after meeting with Mishustin, said that it would abstain from voting. Gennady Zyuganov explained this by saying that the composition and program of the new Cabinet is unknown. However, since President Putin fulfilled the requirements of the Communist party, namely, dismissed the Medvedev government and proposed to expand the powers of the Parliament, the Communist party will not vote against the appointment of Mishustin.
State Duma confirmation
On 16 January, Mikhail Mishustin was confirmed by the State Duma as Prime Minister. This was the first time ever that a PM was confirmed without any votes against.
Structure and composition
During a meeting with the Communist Party, Mishustin announced drastic changes in the structure and personal composition of the government. Mikhail Mishustin, during the formation of the cabinet, held consultations with parliamentary parties. According to State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin, from members of the previous cabinet, all factions expressed support for the power and international blocs, three Deputy Prime Ministers: Tatyana Golikova, Dmitry Kozak and Alexey Gordeyev, as well as Agriculture Minister Dmitry Patrushev. According to Volodin, the MPs spoke critically about four Ministers from previous cabinet: the Education MinisterOlga Vasilieva, the Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky, the Health MinisterVeronika Skvortsova and the Labour and Social Affairs Minister Maxim Topilin. The LiberalDemocratic Party also criticized Yury Trutnev, the Deputy Prime Minister and Presidential Envoy to the Far Eastern Federal District. However, other MPs on the contrary spoke positively about Trutnev. On 21 January, Mikhail Mishustin presented to President Vladimir Putin a draft structure of the Cabinet. On the same day, the President signed a decree on the structure of the Cabinet and appointed the proposed Ministers. According to the decree, the Prime Minister will have 9 deputies, and the Ministry for North Caucasus Affairs will be abolished. On 28 January 2020, Mikhail Mishustin approved the distribution of responsibilities among Deputy Prime Ministers. On 26 March 2020, Mishustin proposed to restore the Government's Presidium, a body in the structure of the Cabinet formed to solve operational issues. Previously, such a body existed in the first Government of Medvedev, but in the second Government of Medvedev there was no Presidium. On 29 March, the Presidium was formed.
Subsequent changes
Reshuffle due to COVID-19
Reshuffle in the Cabinet caused by the detection of disease in government members. It is assumed that all changes temporary and infected members of the government will return to the exercise of their powers after recovery.
On 30 April 2020, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin tested positive for COVID-19 and was hospitalised, Andrey Belousov was appointed the Acting Prime Minister. On 19 May, Mishustin returned to the exercise of his powers.
On 1 May 2020, Construction Minister Vladimir Yakushev tested positive for COVID-19 and was hospitalised, Nikita Stasishin was appointed the Acting Minister. On 26 May Yakushev recovered and returned to the exercise of his powers.
On 6 May 2020, Culture Minister Olga Lyubimova tested positive for COVID-19, Sergey Obryvalin was appointed the Acting Minister. Since the disease was mild, on 14 May Lyubimova recovered and returned to the exercise of her powers.
