Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 11 August 1947.
Major Lyall Wilkes
, Newcastle upon Tyne Central
12:00,
11 August 1947
asked the Minister of National Insurance where after a wife's death family allowances accordingly become payable to the surviving father, in circumstances where the children after the mother's death are cared for by another person, if he will consider giving the local police courts a discretion to make an order directing the family allowances to be paid to such other person on application.
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.
