Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Defence – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 18 December 1973.
Mr Arthur Lewis
, West Ham North
12:00,
18 December 1973
asked the Minister of State for Defence why by 3rd December 1973 the hon. Member for West Ham, North had not received a reply to his letter of 26th October regarding damage being caused by RAF planes; and whether he will expedite this reply and ensure speedier replies to his correspondence in future.
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.
