Oral Answers to Questions — Church Commissioners – in the House of Commons at 2:30 pm on 26 October 2010.
Sarah Newton
Conservative, Truro and Falmouth
2:30,
26 October 2010
What recent representations the Church commissioners have made to the Chancellor of the exchequer on VAT relief on the repair of church buildings after March 2011.
Tony Baldry
The Second Church Estates Commissioner, The Second Church Estates Commissioner
I refer my hon. Friend to the answer that I gave a few moments ago to my hon. Friend Mr Ruffley.
Sarah Newton
Conservative, Truro and Falmouth
I thank my hon. Friend for that answer, which will be very much appreciated in my Constituency.
As one of Cornwall's most visited landmarks, Truro cathedral inspires thousands of people each year with its architecture, music and faith. The cathedral's future relies on a £4 million investment in a vision to restore and redevelop it. The savings in VAT will be significant. Will my hon. Friend join me in thanking volunteers up and down the country who, like those in my constituency, give their time and talent freely to fundraise for their places of worship?
Tony Baldry
The Second Church Estates Commissioner, The Second Church Estates Commissioner
My hon. Friend makes an extremely good point. For all the churches and cathedrals in this country, there are hundreds of thousands of volunteers giving hours and hours of voluntary time to maintain the fabric of our very important heritage to hand on to future generations. We should all be extremely grateful to them.
Matters concerning the established Church of England are dealt with at Question Time by a parliamentary representative of the church commissioners.
The church commissioner's role is to answer any parliamentary questions relating to the Church of England in the same way that a government minister may face questions about a particular government department.
The Second Church Estates Commissioner is appointed by the crown and is traditionally a backbench member of the party in government. The appointment lasts for the duration of the Parliament.
The chancellor of the exchequer is the government's chief financial minister and as such is responsible for raising government revenue through taxation or borrowing and for controlling overall government spending.
The chancellor's plans for the economy are delivered to the House of Commons every year in the Budget speech.
The chancellor is the most senior figure at the Treasury, even though the prime minister holds an additional title of 'First Lord of the Treasury'. He normally resides at Number 11 Downing Street.
In a general election, each Constituency chooses an MP to represent them. MPs have a responsibility to represnt the views of the Constituency in the House of Commons. There are 650 Constituencies, and thus 650 MPs. A citizen of a Constituency is known as a Constituent
