Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Treasury – in the House of Commons at 2:30 pm on 16 March 2010.
Alistair Burt
Opposition Whip (Commons), Deputy Chair, Conservative Party
2:30,
16 March 2010
I thank the Minister for his conclusive answer. With a Budget deficit higher than that of the Greeks, is it not a matter of some embarrassment to the Government that after 13 years of their being responsible for the economy, serious figures, from the CBI, to the Bank of England, to credit rating agencies, are raising questions about this country's credit rating in the manner of some disreputable pyramid scheme salesman who has finally been caught out?
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.
