Oral Answers to Questions — Royal Air Force – in the House of Commons at on 17 March 1943.
Mr Reginald Purbrick
, Liverpool, Walton
asked the Secretary of State for Air whether, in view of the larger bombs we now have available, he will arrange, at the first opportunity, for a heavy bomb to be dropped down the crater of Mount Vesuvius in order to make a practical test as to whether the disturbances created thereby will give rise to severe earthquakes and eruptions?
Sir Archibald Sinclair
, Caithness and Sutherland
All possible targets for our bombing attacks are carefully considered. It would not be in the public interest to say more.
Captain William Strickland
, Coventry
Can the Minister give an assurance to the House that Bomber Command will not drop a "Purbrick" on this mountain?
Mr Ian Hannah
, Wolverhampton Bilston
How can we be sure that the earthquake would be in the right place?
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.
