– in the House of Commons at on 6 December 1939.
Mr Philip Noel-Baker
, Derby
asked the Prime Minister whether he can make a statement concerning the recent conversations between the British Ambassador in Tokyo and the Foreign Minister of Japan?
Mr R.A. Butler
, Saffron Walden
The recent conversations, to which the hon. Member presumably refers, were between His Majesty's Ambassador and the Japanese Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs. An informal exchange of views on the issues arising out of the position at Tientsin and other outstanding questions took place.
Mr Philip Noel-Baker
, Derby
Can the right hon. Gentleman say whether the Japanese Minister raised the question of the silver reserves at Tientsin, and whether His Majesty's Government adhere to the principles which they have previously enunciated?
Mr R.A. Butler
, Saffron Walden
The question of silver, I presume, arose with various other questions when the position at Tientsin was discussed. His Majesty's Government adhere to the principles they have previously enunciated.
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.
