Oral Answers to Questions — Ministry of Information – in the House of Commons at on 10 March 1943.
Mr Richard Stokes
, Ipswich
asked the Minister of Information what censorship regulation prohibits cable companies from advising the sender of a cable whether or not the cable reached the addressee safely; and for what reason such a regulation is necessary?
Mr Brendan Bracken
, Paddington North
This prohibition is an essential security measure, and 1s contained in the Regulations for Censorship. It would greatly assist the evasion of wartime currency and trade regulations if senders of cables could count on knowing whether or not these are delivered safely to the addressees.
Mr Richard Stokes
, Ipswich
Will my right hon. Friend tell me why a cable which I sent seeking confirmation of a statement made by Mr. Montagu Norman has never been received, and why I cannot get information from the cable company or from anywhere else as to what has happened to the cable? It is perfectly obvious.
Mr Brendan Bracken
, Paddington North
In view of the eminence of the sender and of the gentleman mentioned in the cable, I will try to get the Chief Censor to make an exception in this case.
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.
