Part of the debate – in the House of Commons am 12:00 am ar 18 Rhagfyr 1973.
Mr Arthur Lewis
, West Ham North
12:00,
18 Rhagfyr 1973
I am much obliged to my hon. Friend. He may not know that I sat through the whole debate this evening trying to get into it but, as is customary, only the usual speakers were called, so I was unable to make my point earlier. I am therefore doing that which is customary—perhaps it is a subterfuge—and making my point under these emergency regulations. However, I agree with my hon. Friend and I am not greatly concerned whether what I am asking for is done under these regulations or any other regulations. All I want is an assurance from the Minister that he will make paraffin readily available to the elderly, the sick and disabled, and the immigrants. I want an assurance that they will be able to obtain it, preferably from local authority depots, at wholesale price. If that is arranged it will help pensioners financially and will save them from suffering.
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.