Oral Answers to Questions — Home Department – in the House of Commons at 2:30 pm on 14 December 2009.
Andrew MacKay
Conservative, Bracknell
2:30,
14 December 2009
What recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the system for processing student visa applications.
Phil Woolas
Minister of State (the North West), Home Office, Minister of State (the North West), HM Treasury, Minister of State (the North West), Regional Affairs
I refer the right hon. Gentleman to the answer that I gave several moments ago.
Andrew MacKay
Conservative, Bracknell
I am not sure that the Minister fully answered the earlier question, watching as I was on the screen in my office, about referees being confirmed as British and suitable for purpose. Will he now answer that question?
Phil Woolas
Minister of State (the North West), Home Office, Minister of State (the North West), HM Treasury, Minister of State (the North West), Regional Affairs
I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for asking the same question as Mr. Evennett. When the right hon. Gentleman gets to his office tomorrow, he can read the reply in Hansard. The serious point, of course, is that there are different strategies for checking on the eligibility and suitability of those people. This question has been raised by hon. Members on both sides of the House, and that is why we have re-examined the system to ensure that it is robust.
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.
