Oral Answers to Questions — Germany – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 17 February 1954.
Mr Arthur Lewis
, West Ham North
12:00,
17 February 1954
asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he will make a statement on the Berlin Conference.
Mr Selwyn Lloyd
, Wirral
No, Sir.
Mr Arthur Lewis
, West Ham North
I appreciate that the Minister may not be in a position to make a statement today, but if a Question were put down for next week would the Minister then be prepared to make a statement?
Mr Selwyn Lloyd
, Wirral
This is obviously a matter of very great importance to the House, and I think it is one which had better be discussed through the usual channels.
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.
