Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Scotland – in the House of Commons at 1:41 pm on 5 March 1997.
Alex Salmond
Leader, Scottish National Party
1:41,
5 March 1997
Did not the Education Minister effectively instigate the teachers' strike in Glasgow today through a financial settlement which aims a dagger at the heart of Scottish education? The Minister spent £250,000 on a study that basically told us that expenditure on secondary education in Scotland is higher because the provision is higher. Is it Tory policy to reduce provision in Scotland to the level that pertains south of the border? If so, the chances of the Education Minister getting his old job back in teaching after the election will be extremely limited.
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.
