– in the House of Commons at on 6 March 1929.
Colonel Josiah Wedgwood
, Newcastle-under-Lyme
asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, with reference to the protection hitherto afforded by the League of Nations to minorities protected by the Treaties with Poland, Rumania, Hungary, etc., whether he will take steps to see that His Majesty's Government initiates a more satisfactory system, especially for minorities which have no national representation at present at Geneva?
Colonel Josiah Wedgwood
, Newcastle-under-Lyme
Will the right hon. Gentleman press for a reversion to the old tradition of this country in regard to the protection of minorities, so honour ably associated with the names of Canning, Palmerston and Gladstone?
Lieut-General Edward Fitzroy
, Daventry
That raises a big question of policy which cannot be debated now.
Mr Benjamin Riley
, Dewsbury
Has the Cabinet had recently under consideration our responsibility, along with other Powers, towards minorities under these treaties; and what is our policy in the matter?
Mr. LOCKER-LAMPSON:
We have carried out all our responsibilites under the minority treaties. As I pointed out on a previous occasion, the whole subject is now under the consideration of the Council of the League of Nations, and it is being discussed, I think, at the meeting to-day. I hope hon. Members will await the statement which my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary will probably make.
Colonel Josiah Wedgwood
, Newcastle-under-Lyme
Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that we are giving the impression of handing over this traditional duty of ours to the new German Republic?
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.
The cabinet is the group of twenty or so (and no more than 22) senior government ministers who are responsible for running the departments of state and deciding government policy.
It is chaired by the prime minister.
The cabinet is bound by collective responsibility, which means that all its members must abide by and defend the decisions it takes, despite any private doubts that they might have.
Cabinet ministers are appointed by the prime minister and chosen from MPs or peers of the governing party.
However, during periods of national emergency, or when no single party gains a large enough majority to govern alone, coalition governments have been formed with cabinets containing members from more than one political party.
War cabinets have sometimes been formed with a much smaller membership than the full cabinet.
From time to time the prime minister will reorganise the cabinet in order to bring in new members, or to move existing members around. This reorganisation is known as a cabinet re-shuffle.
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