Oral Answers to Questions — Royal Navy. – in the House of Commons at on 31 January 1940.
Mr John Morgan
, Doncaster
asked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether he will fuel and light, travelling, subsistence, servants, camp kit, rations, and any other allowance; and what were the previous payments where any change has taken place since the outbreak of the war?
Mr Geoffrey Shakespeare
, Norwich
As the answer involves a number of tables of figures I will, with the hon. Member's permission, circulate it in the OFFICIAL REPORT.
Mr Winston Churchill
, Epping
I would refer the hon. Member to the reply which the Prime Minister gave yesterday to my hon. Friend the Member for East Fife (Mr. Henderson Stewart). I hope to continue the practice of making from time to time full statements to the House on the progress of the war at sea.
Mr John Morgan
, Doncaster
May I take it from the answer that the right hon. Gentleman will be prepared to meet Members on this side of the House under conditions similar to those under which he meets Members on the other side, and on a similar status?
Mr Winston Churchill
, Epping
If I received an invitation, I should have the greatest pleasure in complying with it.
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.
The cabinet normally meets once a week in the cabinet room at Downing Street.
The House of Commons is one of the houses of parliament. Here, elected MPs (elected by the "commons", i.e. the people) debate. In modern times, nearly all power resides in this house. In the commons are 650 MPs, as well as a speaker and three deputy speakers.
