Oral Answers to Questions — Land and Natural Resources – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 21 December 1964.
Mr William Van Straubenzee
, Wokingham
12:00,
21 December 1964
asked the Minister of Land and Natural Resources whether the proposed Land Commission will be an independent body on the lines of the old Central Land Board, or whether it will form part of his Department.
Mr Frederick Willey
, Sunderland North
I must ask the hon. Member to wait for the introduction of legislation.
Mr William Van Straubenzee
, Wokingham
Surely the right hon. Gentleman can give us, at least in outline, what his thoughts are? [HON. MEMBERS:" No."] I am eternally hopeful. Would he not feel that the precedent I have given him might be useful to follow? Could he not in a sentence or two give his views on that?
Mr Frederick Willey
, Sunderland North
No, I must ask the hon. Member to await the legislation.
Mr Frederick Corfield
, Gloucestershire South
How does this square with the great phrase in the Labour Party manifesto:
Labour is ready, Poised to swing its plans into instant operation.
Mr Frederick Willey
, Sunderland North
I am anxious to bring this legislation into operation as soon as possible, but I must ask the hon. Member to wait.
Mr Paul Channon
, Southend West
asked the Minister of Land and Natural Resources when he proposes to introduce legislation to establish a Land Commission.
Mr Frederick Willey
, Sunderland North
As soon as possible.
Mr Paul Channon
, Southend West
Is not the right hon. Gentleman aware that that reply will cause grave dissatisfaction? Would he not agree that there is grave uncertainty about this and it is in the public interest that he should give us his plans as soon as possible and publish a white paper on the subject? In view of the fact that there is very little expert support for the plan, can he authoritatively confirm that he and his hon. Friends have decided not to introduce it in the first 100 days?
Mr Frederick Willey
, Sunderland North
I have said that I will introduce it as soon as possible, and I am glad to note that both sides of the House have welcomed this.
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.
A document issued by the Government laying out its policy, or proposed policy, on a topic of current concern.Although a white paper may occasion consultation as to the details of new legislation, it does signify a clear intention on the part of a government to pass new law. This is a contrast with green papers, which are issued less frequently, are more open-ended and may merely propose a strategy to be implemented in the details of other legislation.
More from wikipedia here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_paper
