The
Shadow Cabinet (also called the
Front Bench) is a senior group of opposition spokespeople in the
Westminster System of government who together under the leadership of the
Leader of the Opposition (or the leader of other smaller opposition parties) form an alternative cabinet to the government's, and whose members
shadow or mark each individual member of the government. Members of a shadow cabinet often but not always are appointed to a cabinet post if and when their party gets into government.
In the United Kingdom and Canada the major opposition party and specifically its shadow cabinet is often called Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition. The adjective "loyal" is used because while there are policy differences, everyone acknowledges the role of the opposition in the system.