Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Coal Industry – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 1 May 1947.
Mr James Murray
, Spennymoor
12:00,
1 May 1947
asked the Minister of Fuel and Power the number of persons now employed at each pit sunk and each drift driven in the county of Durham covering the last 25 years, in accordance with his letter to the hon. Member for Spennymoor, dated 18th April, 1947; the number of pits closed in the county of Durham over the same period; and the total number of persons affected.
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.
