– in the House of Commons at on 12 March 1924.
Sir Patrick Hannon
, Birmingham Moseley
asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether, in the interests of British exporters, he will issue instructions to the British Legation in Peking to co-operate with the Legations of the signatories of the Nine-Power Customs Treaty to ensure the ratification of Article VIII of the Mackay Treaty?
Mr Arthur Ponsonby
, Sheffield, Brightside
If, as I assume, the hon. Member refers to the fact that Article 8 of the Mackay Treaty, providing for the abolition of "likin," has not in fact been carried out by the Chinese authorities, I can assure him that His Majesty's Government are fully alive to the importance of the matter. They are indeed at present in consultation with His Majesty's Minister at Peking as to the best means of dealing with this question at the special Conference to be held in pursuance of the Nine-Power Customs Treaty, but it must be realised that great difficulties exist owing to the present disorganised conditions in China and the lack of control of the Central Government over many of the provincial authorities.
Sir Patrick Hannon
, Birmingham Moseley
Does the hon. Gentleman realise the real gravity of the situation created by this new Chinese law with regard to British trade in China, if it becomes operative will he do his best to get the co-operation of the other foreign Powers to see that this law does not become operative?
Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
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.
