– in the House of Commons at 9:34 am on 5 March 1993.
Tom Clarke
Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland
9:34,
5 March 1993
On a point of order, Madam Speaker. I should be grateful if you would consider a point of order arising from our proceedings on Wednesday this week, when we were dealing with Scottish questions. You may recall that my hon. Friend the Member for Paisley, South (Mr. McMaster) asked whether the Secretary of State would be meeting representatives of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities to discuss local services.
Later in our exchanges, I intervened to ask for the Government's response to the problems of community care in Scotland. That led to the following reply from the hon. Member for Eastwood (Mr. Stewart), the Minister responsible at the Scottish Office:
The House expected the hon. Gentleman to defend Monklands district council and its employment policies and religious discrimination. Does the hon. Gentleman not defend every action of Monklands district council? I see that he sits silent, and I am not surprised."—[Official Report, 3 March 1993; Vol. 220, c. 291.]
I gave the hon. Gentleman notice that I intended to refer to him, although he did not do the same to me.
That exchange led to a comment in yesterday's evening papers by the chairman of the Monklands West Conservative Association:
It was noticeable that Tom Clarke, given full opportunity in the Commons yesterday to make his position clear, refused to do so. He sat through it all and said nothing, no doubt believing that this will show he was not involved.
Madam Speaker, you and I know the rules of the House, and you know that I was not entitled to respond to a question from a Minister at Question Time. You also know that it is disgraceful that the Minister, in an effort to influence television viewers and get the response that we saw in yesterday's evening press, made that comment which was not a contribution to an inquiry that was published yesterday—in which I had no involvement whatever—covering events after I had left Monklands district council to come to the House in 1982.
Is not it despicable that the Minister has abused the procedures of the House for cheap smears based on unsubstantiated allegations? I ask for your considered view on that abuse of our procedures.
Miss Betty Boothroyd
Speaker of the House of Commons
I noticed that one or two rhetorical questions were asked during Question Time on Wednesday. Of course, there is no possibility for Members to reply to such questions and therefore no conclusions should be drawn when they do not. That fact is well understood within the House, but it may not be so to those who follow our proceedings, and I am glad to be able to make that position clear now.
Mr Graham Riddick
, Colne Valley
Further to that point of order—
Miss Betty Boothroyd
Speaker of the House of Commons
There can be no further point of order. I have dealt with the matter.
Mr Graham Riddick
, Colne Valley
Well, Madam Speaker, it is fair to point out that the hon. Member for Monklands, West (Mr. Clarke) had a number of opportunities to respond to the accusations of corruption in Monklands district council.
Miss Betty Boothroyd
Speaker of the House of Commons
Order. That is not the case. I have given my ruling and it is an abuse of the House to attempt to reopen the matter. We will now move on to the Adjournment Debate.
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.
Question Time is an opportunity for MPs and Members of the House of Lords to ask Government Ministers questions. These questions are asked in the Chamber itself and are known as Oral Questions. Members may also put down Written Questions. In the House of Commons, Question Time takes place for an hour on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays after Prayers. The different Government Departments answer questions according to a rota and the questions asked must relate to the responsibilities of the Government Department concerned. In the House of Lords up to four questions may be asked of the Government at the beginning of each day's business. They are known as 'starred questions' because they are marked with a star on the Order Paper. Questions may also be asked at the end of each day's business and these may include a short debate. They are known as 'unstarred questions' and are less frequent. Questions in both Houses must be written down in advance and put on the agenda and both Houses have methods for selecting the questions that will be asked. Further information can be obtained from factsheet P1 at the UK Parliament site.
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 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.
An adjournment debate is a short half hour debate that is introduced by a backbencher at the end of each day's business in the House of Commons.
Adjournment debates are also held in the side chamber of Westminster Hall.
This technical procedure of debating a motion that the House should adjourn gives backbench members the opportunity to discuss issues of concern to them, and to have a minister respond to the points they raise.
The speaker holds a weekly ballot in order to decide which backbench members will get to choose the subject for each daily debate.
Backbenchers normally use this as an opportunity to debate issues related to their constituency.
An all-day adjournment debate is normally held on the final day before each parliamentary recess begins. On these occasions MPs do not have to give advance notice of the subjects which they intend to raise.
The leader of the House replies at the end of the debate to all of the issues raised.
