Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Defence – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 12 February 2001.
Geoffrey Clifton-Brown
Shadow Spokesperson (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
12:00,
12 February 2001
Given that the Government have cut £5 billion from the defence budget since 1997, will the Secretary of State guarantee that none of the underspend—amounting to several hundred million pounds—on last year's budget will be returned to the Treasury?
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.
