Part of the debate – in the House of Commons am 12:00 am ar 12 Rhagfyr 1973.
Mr Ernest Fernyhough
, Jarrow
12:00,
12 Rhagfyr 1973
The right hon. Gentleman has said that he can give the House the assurance which my hon. Friend seeks. However, he knows that at midnight tonight many new regulations will come into being. Many people will not know whether they are infringing the law. There should either be adequate advertisements in the newspapers or the Minister should make a further statement so that the people who want to be on the right side of the law are enabled to do so. The people should have the necessary information before the regulations come into effect.
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.
