Part of Oral Answers to Questions — National Finance – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 24 February 1959.
Mr Konni Zilliacus
, Manchester, Gorton
12:00,
24 February 1959
asked the Chancellor of the exchequer whether he will take steps to equate the financial position of 18–19 year old youths taking a sandwich course in the engineering industry leading to a technical diploma, who pay tax on their incomes and whose parents are not entitled to child allowances, with the financial position of university students, whose parents benefit by the child allowances and who do not pay Income Tax on their maintenance and vacation grants or on their vacation earnings.
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.
