Oral Answers to Questions — Land and Natural Resources – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 21 December 1964.
Mr Anthony Kershaw
, Stroud
12:00,
21 December 1964
asked the Minister of Land and Natural Resources what calculation he has made of the effect of the proposed capital gains tax upon the occupiers and owners of land; and whether he will make a statement.
Mr Frederick Willey
, Sunderland North
I can make no statement on this matter at the moment.
Mr Anthony Kershaw
, Stroud
This is not a very fruitful Question hour. As the right hon. Gentleman has been going out of his way to say that he has no responsibility for anything, can he explain what he proposes to do during the next 50 days? Has he ever heard of the capital gains tax? Will he ask the Chancellor of the exchequer what difference it will make and if it will not mean the reassessment of the value of all holdings in this country?
Mr Frederick Willey
, Sunderland North
I invite the hon. Member to ask that question of my right hon. Friend the Chancellor.
Mr Anthony Kershaw
, Stroud
Will the right hon. Gentleman answer my question?
Mr John Boyd-Carpenter
, Kingston upon Thames
As this is one of the matters on which the right hon. Gentleman advises his colleagues, how does he think the advice will go in this case?
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.
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.
The Chancellor - also known as "Chancellor of the Exchequer" is responsible as a Minister for the treasury, and for the country's economy. For Example, the Chancellor set taxes and tax rates. The Chancellor is the only MP allowed to drink Alcohol in the House of Commons; s/he is permitted an alcoholic drink while delivering the budget.
