Oral Answers to Questions — Scotland – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 26 February 1992.
Mr Gordon McMaster
, Paisley South
12:00,
26 February 1992
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he next plans to meet representatives of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities to discuss strategies to tackle social problems.
Mr Michael Forsyth
, Stirling
I have had useful meetings with the convention's social work committee to discuss our community care strategy and residential care. I see no reason why this should not continue for many years.
Mr Gordon McMaster
, Paisley South
Does the Minister recall that it was his Government which told young Scots to get on their bikes if they had no hopes and no homes? Does he realise that many thousands of young Scots took that advice and came to London, only to find cardboard homes and cardboard hopes? Will he support the campaign launched by Centrepoint today and even at this late stage, after 13 wasted years of Tory rule, take steps urgently to end the housing crisis in Scotland and to give our young people a future there?
Mr Michael Forsyth
, Stirling
It is this Government who have given young people a guarantee of a place in higher or further education or training. No other Government have done that. On housing, does the hon. Gentleman realise that the Government have spent £1 billion every year since 1989 on housing in Scotland? Is he unaware of the action which my hon. Friend took this very week when he distributed another £7·5 million to local authorities to deal with homelessness? The hon. Gentleman should recognise what the Government have done and he should also recognise that his party is promising nothing in this area.
Dennis Canavan
, Falkirk West
In view of Scottish local authority support for constitutional change, will the Minister tell us which of the Prime Minister's weekend statements he agrees with—the one on Saturday when he resolutely defended the status quo or the one on Monday morning when he was forced to admit that he would have to take stock of the situation after the General Election? Bearing in mind that the Majority of people in Scotland want a Scottish Parliament with legislative and economic powers, does the Minister support his Prime Minister in encouraging the people of Scotland to take the zero option by achieving a complete wipe-out of Scottish Tory Members at the next general election, including the hon. Member for Stirling (Mr. Forsyth)?
Mr Michael Forsyth
, Stirling
If the hon. Gentleman had been certain about the Labour party's prospects in Stirling, he would not have run away to Falkirk when he was the Member of Parliament for part of that area. The Prime Minister's message was clear. The hon. Gentleman has demonstrated today that those who wish to preserve the Union with the United Kingdom have only one party to vote for at the General Election and that is the Conservative party.
Mr Tony Worthington
, Clydebank and Milngavie
Will the Minister meet the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities urgently to discuss the problem of mounting youth unemployment in Scotland? To use just one example, in Strathclyde there is now a shortfall of 3,700 training places. A total of 3,000 fewer training places have been offered this year than last. How can the Minister claim that the guarantee is being met when there is such a shortfall? When he meets COSLA, will he discuss Scottish Enterprise's training budget? Figures that I have obtained from Scottish Enterprise make it clear that there has been a cut of 15 per cent. overall at a time of mounting youth and adult unemployment. Nearly 20 per cent. has been cut from the training budget. There is mounting long-term unemployment—
Mr Robert Maclennan
, Caithness and Sutherland
On a point of order, Mr. Speaker.
Mr Bernard Weatherill
, Croydon North East
Order. Nothing out of order has occurred.
Mr Robert Maclennan
, Caithness and Sutherland
The hon. Member for Clydebank and Milngavie (Mr. Worthington) is making a speech.
Mr Bernard Weatherill
, Croydon North East
That is up to me.
Mr Tony Worthington
, Clydebank and Milngavie
In 1988–89 the Government cut the training budget because they said that there was falling unemployment. Why, when there is mounting unemployment, have they cut the training budget for Scottish Enterprise by 15 per cent?
Mr Michael Forsyth
, Stirling
The hon. Gentleman surely knows that we are spending 2·5 times as much on training as the last Labour Government. That is undeniable. The hon. Gentleman has come to the House and asked about unemployment when he is a member of a party that wishes to put a tax on jobs through its training levy, wishes to destroy employment by introducing a minimum wage and, worst of all, wishes to make Scotland the highest taxed part of the United Kingdom with its proposal for an assembly. Those policies would destroy jobs. The hon. Gentleman knows that and it is why he does not want to hear the facts.
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.
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.
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.
In a general election, each constituency chooses an MP to represent it by process of election. The party who wins the most seats in parliament is in power, with its leader becoming Prime Minister and its Ministers/Shadow Ministers making up the new Cabinet. If no party has a majority, this is known as a hung Parliament. The next general election will take place on or before 3rd June 2010.
The term "majority" is used in two ways in Parliament. Firstly a Government cannot operate effectively unless it can command a majority in the House of Commons - a majority means winning more than 50% of the votes in a division. Should a Government fail to hold the confidence of the House, it has to hold a General Election. Secondly the term can also be used in an election, where it refers to the margin which the candidate with the most votes has over the candidate coming second. To win a seat a candidate need only have a majority of 1.
A Member of Parliament (MP) is elected by a particular area or constituency in Britain to represent them in the House of Commons. MPs divide their time between their constituency and the Houses of Parliament in London. Once elected it is an MP's job to represent all the people in his or her constituency. An MP can ask Government Ministers questions, speak about issues in the House of Commons and consider and propose new laws.
The Speaker is an MP who has been elected to act as Chairman during debates in the House of Commons. He or she is responsible for ensuring that the rules laid down by the House for the carrying out of its business are observed. It is the Speaker who calls MPs to speak, and maintains order in the House. He or she acts as the House's representative in its relations with outside bodies and the other elements of Parliament such as the Lords and the Monarch. The Speaker is also responsible for protecting the interests of minorities in the House. He or she must ensure that the holders of an opinion, however unpopular, are allowed to put across their view without undue obstruction. It is also the Speaker who reprimands, on behalf of the House, an MP brought to the Bar of the House. In the case of disobedience the Speaker can 'name' an MP which results in their suspension from the House for a period. The Speaker must be impartial in all matters. He or she is elected by MPs in the House of Commons but then ceases to be involved in party politics. All sides in the House rely on the Speaker's disinterest. Even after retirement a former Speaker will not take part in political issues. Taking on the office means losing close contact with old colleagues and keeping apart from all groups and interests, even avoiding using the House of Commons dining rooms or bars. The Speaker continues as a Member of Parliament dealing with constituent's letters and problems. By tradition other candidates from the major parties do not contest the Speaker's seat at a General Election. The Speakership dates back to 1377 when Sir Thomas Hungerford was appointed to the role. The title Speaker comes from the fact that the Speaker was the official spokesman of the House of Commons to the Monarch. In the early years of the office, several Speakers suffered violent deaths when they presented unwelcome news to the King. Further information can be obtained from factsheet M2 on the UK Parliament website.
