Oral Answers to Questions — Scotland – in the House of Commons at on 8 February 1944.
Mr. McNeil:
asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if the consultative committee appointed by the Minister of Supply to minimise damage to timber is to have jurisdiction in Scotland.
Mr Charles Peat
, Darlington
I have been asked to reply. The committee already appointed will consider timber felling in England and Wales. The question whether a similar committee is desirable in Scotland is at present under consideration with the principal Scottish organisations concerned.
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.
