People's Chamber
According to the Constitution, all members of the Council of Ministers were formally elected to their posts by the People's Chamber for a five-year term. In fact, these decisions probably emanated from the "Politbüro" and the Central Committee of the SED. The Council of Ministers was required to work closely with the People's Chamber, and according to its administrative guidelines, the council was required to have all its legal drafts and decisions approved by the People's Chamber before they became law. In practice, the converse was true; the People's Chamber was obliged to approve those actions that were undertaken by the council and then routinely submitted to the legislature. Similarly, the People's Chamber was given the formal responsibility of selecting the membership of the council; in practice such personnel decisions were made by the "Politbüro". The legislature was then expected to approve the selections.