Oral Answers to Questions — National Finance – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 11 November 1947.
Viscount Turnour
, Horsham
12:00,
11 November 1947
asked the Chancellor of the exchequer if, in view of the financial ban upon foreign travel imposed upon the public, he will limit the number of delegations of hon. Members of this House to foreign countries, other than official Government delegations, where such delegations involve the spending of British currency which would not be permitted to private individuals.
Mr Hugh Dalton
, Bishop Auckland
I hope that, now the Parliamentary Recess is over, there will be a natural decline in the number of these delegations.
Viscount Turnour
, Horsham
Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that since the war there has been an immense increase compared with prewar days of unofficial delegations, deputations and missions by hon. Members of this House; that a great number of people outside this House are questioning the value of these visits at a time when nobody else is going abroad, and in the language of the vernacular, are saying, "These blokes are going to get a free ride and the run of their teeth, and that is all they are out for"?
Mr Hugh Dalton
, Bishop Auckland
I have already said, now that the Parliamentary Recess is over and the Sittings of Parliament have resumed, I naturally expect that there will be a decline in the number of these delegations, because hon. Members will no doubt wish to be here rather than touring.
Viscount Turnour
, Horsham
Yes, but why should hon. Members of this House be given a privilege which is not given to people outside? Why should they be allowed to travel in this way when nobody else is allowed to?
Mr Hugh Dalton
, Bishop Auckland
There are two things which I would say in reply to that. First of all, it is not the case that no persons other than hon. Members of this House travel abroad at present; there are considerable facilities for people to travel abroad on business and for other purposes. In the second place, it does not rest primarily with me to decide the details of these delegations. Many of them are arranged at the suggestion of the Foreign Office or other Departments concerned.
Mr Alfred Bossom
, Maidstone
Could the Chancellor say how much the taxpayer has had to pay to enable these people to travel round the world?
Mr Hugh Dalton
, Bishop Auckland
I could not say, but the Tory Party has had its whack of it anyway.
The chancellor of the exchequer is the government's chief financial minister and as such is responsible for raising government revenue through taxation or borrowing and for controlling overall government spending.
The chancellor's plans for the economy are delivered to the House of Commons every year in the Budget speech.
The chancellor is the most senior figure at the Treasury, even though the prime minister holds an additional title of 'First Lord of the Treasury'. He normally resides at Number 11 Downing Street.
The Chancellor - also known as "Chancellor of the Exchequer" is responsible as a Minister for the treasury, and for the country's economy. For Example, the Chancellor set taxes and tax rates. The Chancellor is the only MP allowed to drink Alcohol in the House of Commons; s/he is permitted an alcoholic drink while delivering the budget.
The political party system in the English-speaking world evolved in the 17th century, during the fight over the ascension of James the Second to the Throne. James was a Catholic and a Stuart. Those who argued for Parliamentary supremacy were called Whigs, after a Scottish word whiggamore, meaning "horse-driver," applied to Protestant rebels. It was meant as an insult.
They were opposed by Tories, from the Irish word toraidhe (literally, "pursuer," but commonly applied to highwaymen and cow thieves). It was used — obviously derisively — to refer to those who supported the Crown.
By the mid 1700s, the words Tory and Whig were commonly used to describe two political groupings. Tories supported the Church of England, the Crown, and the country gentry, while Whigs supported the rights of religious dissent and the rising industrial bourgeoisie. In the 19th century, Whigs became Liberals; Tories became Conservatives.
