Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Royal Air Force – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 19 March 1947.
Mr David Gammans
, Hornsey
12:00,
19 March 1947
Is the Secretary of State aware that the Air Ministry predicted two thaws which did not come off, and that once they predicted rain and fog, which, fortunately, did not arrive? Will he try to improve the reliability of his forecasts, in view of the great inconvenience this country has suffered from the unreliable forecasts of the Minister of Fuel and Power?
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.
