Oral Answers to Questions — Local Government – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 14 October 1969.
Mr John Tilney
, Liverpool Wavertree
12:00,
14 October 1969
asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government whether he will introduce legislation to derate tips so long as they are being removed.
Mr Arthur Skeffington
, Hayes and Harlington
Land is liable to rates only when it is beneficially occupied. The commercial extraction of useful material from tips has been held in some cases to be beneficial occupation for this purpose. The effects of rating upon the extraction of shale are under consideration.
Mr John Tilney
, Liverpool Wavertree
Will the Minister bear in mind that many contractors now think that it will not pay them to move these tips—or bings, as they are called in some places—but are they not an eyesore which should be removed?
Mr Arthur Skeffington
, Hayes and Harlington
The hon. Member may like to know that I have met representatives of the industry and asked them for detailed figures so that if a case can be made on economics to do this essential work it may be considered.
Mr Joe Ashton
, Bassetlaw
Is it not wrong that a Labour Government should be giving grants for the removal of these spoil heaps and then Tory councils should accept those grants and then heap on rateable value for removing them?
Mr Arthur Skeffington
, Hayes and Harlington
Local authorities may have no option when rates are involved. What we have to do is to establish the facts. That is what I am trying to do.
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 political party system in the English-speaking world evolved in the 17th century, during the fight over the ascension of James the Second to the Throne. James was a Catholic and a Stuart. Those who argued for Parliamentary supremacy were called Whigs, after a Scottish word whiggamore, meaning "horse-driver," applied to Protestant rebels. It was meant as an insult.
They were opposed by Tories, from the Irish word toraidhe (literally, "pursuer," but commonly applied to highwaymen and cow thieves). It was used — obviously derisively — to refer to those who supported the Crown.
By the mid 1700s, the words Tory and Whig were commonly used to describe two political groupings. Tories supported the Church of England, the Crown, and the country gentry, while Whigs supported the rights of religious dissent and the rising industrial bourgeoisie. In the 19th century, Whigs became Liberals; Tories became Conservatives.
