– in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 18 February 1954.
Mr Arthur Lewis
, West Ham North
12:00,
18 February 1954
asked the Secretary to the Treasury why Her Majesty's official Opposition are not allowed to send out their written whips and other official documents in franked envelopes, similarly to Her Majesty's Government; and whether he will take the necessary action to ensure that Her Majesty's official Opposition enjoy the same privileges in this connection as Her Majesty's Government.
Mr John Boyd-Carpenter
, Kingston upon Thames
I see no reason to make a change in the present practice which has been the same at least since 1895.
Mr Arthur Lewis
, West Ham North
Because the practice has been in operation so long does not mean that it should not be altered. Is the Minister aware that in many respects Her Majesty's Opposition has proved itself to be acting more in the interests of the people and the country than Her Majesty's Government, and, on those grounds alone, will he see that it gets the same facilities as Her Majesty's Government?
Mr John Boyd-Carpenter
, Kingston upon Thames
I do not think that that is a very good argument. I must remind the hon. Gentleman that the state of affairs was maintained by the Administration between 1945 and 1951.
The Opposition are the political parties in the House of Commons other than the largest or Government party. They are called the Opposition because they sit on the benches opposite the Government in the House of Commons Chamber. The largest of the Opposition parties is known as Her Majesty's Opposition. The role of the Official Opposition is to question and scrutinise the work of Government. The Opposition often votes against the Government. In a sense the Official Opposition is the "Government in waiting".
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.
