Oral Answers to Questions — Royal Air Force – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 10 June 1964.
Mr Albert Hilton
, South West Norfolk
12:00,
10 June 1964
asked the Secretary of State for Defence when United States Air Force personnel will vacate the air base at Sculthorpe, Norfolk; and what is to be the future use of this site.
Mr Hugh Fraser
, Stafford and Stone
The United States Air Force will finally vacate the station on 30th June, 1964, when it will be returned to the Royal Air Force. A possible Service requirement is still being considered.
Mr Albert Hilton
, South West Norfolk
We have had similar replies to this on a number of occasions and have been told that an announcement will shortly be made about the further use of this important site. [HON. MEMBERS: "Question."] Wait for it and you will get the question.
Sir Harry Hylton-Foster
, Cities of London and Westminster
Order. This is Question Time, and not the time for making a statement. It is not the importance of the question that matters; it is the fact that it is a question.
Mr Albert Hilton
, South West Norfolk
Is the Minister aware that this is a very valuable site, and that it employs hundreds of civilians who have no prospects of any alternative work in the area? Will he see that immediate consultations are held between the various Government Departments, to make sure that this site is put to the best possible use in order to provide alternative employment for the civilians who work there?
Mr Hugh Fraser
, Stafford and Stone
Yes. Consultations are going on at the moment and, as I said, I hope to be able to give a reply to the House shortly.
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.
Question Time is an opportunity for MPs and Members of the House of Lords to ask Government Ministers questions. These questions are asked in the Chamber itself and are known as Oral Questions. Members may also put down Written Questions. In the House of Commons, Question Time takes place for an hour on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays after Prayers. The different Government Departments answer questions according to a rota and the questions asked must relate to the responsibilities of the Government Department concerned. In the House of Lords up to four questions may be asked of the Government at the beginning of each day's business. They are known as 'starred questions' because they are marked with a star on the Order Paper. Questions may also be asked at the end of each day's business and these may include a short debate. They are known as 'unstarred questions' and are less frequent. Questions in both Houses must be written down in advance and put on the agenda and both Houses have methods for selecting the questions that will be asked. Further information can be obtained from factsheet P1 at the UK Parliament site.
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.
