– in the House of Commons am 12:00 am ar 5 Awst 1947.
Mr Hugh Hutchinson
, Manchester Rusholme
12:00,
5 Awst 1947
asked the Minister of Labour why the British Government delegate at the I.L.O. Conference at Geneva opposed the Amendment moved by the Australian Government delegate that no worker should be discriminated against in any way or be dismissed because he was a member, or agent, or official of a trade union.
Mr George Isaacs
, Southwark North
I would refer my hon. Friend to my reply of 17th July to the hon. Member for Mile End (Mr. Piratin) a copy of which I am sending him.
Mr Hugh Hutchinson
, Manchester Rusholme
Would not my right hon. Friend agree that we can go too far in denying human rights in order to appease American big business?
Mr George Isaacs
, Southwark North
I think that if the hon. Gentleman will read my answer, he will see that there is a misunderstanding as to what the resolution was.
Mr George Drayson
, Skipton
Can the Minister say whether the British delegation supported any resolution which laid down that a worker should not be discriminated against because he did not become a member of a union?
Mr George Isaacs
, Southwark North
I gave a full answer on this subject in reply to the Question to which I have referred and another Question by the hon. Member for Kingston-upon-Thames (Mr. Boyd-Carpenter). Both Questions overlapped and were based upon a Press statement which was not a complete report of rather lengthy proceedings If the hon. Gentleman looks at the answer, I think he will find that that is so.
A group of workers who have united to promote their common interests.
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
As a bill passes through Parliament, MPs and peers may suggest amendments - or changes - which they believe will improve the quality of the legislation.
Many hundreds of amendments are proposed by members to major bills as they pass through committee stage, report stage and third reading in both Houses of Parliament.
In the end only a handful of amendments will be incorporated into any bill.
The Speaker - or the chairman in the case of standing committees - has the power to select which amendments should be debated.
