Part of Prime Minister – in the House of Commons at on 24 July 2024.
Pete Wishart
Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Constitution), SNP Deputy Leader, Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Home Affairs)
The Prime Minister has achieved something that we did not think would be possible in such a short period of time. In fewer than three weeks, he has had a significant rebellion and suspended seven of his Members of Parliament—all for standing up against child poverty. And this from a Labour Government. The headlines are awful for the Prime Minister this morning. Poverty campaigners are furious with him. Is his honeymoon over before it has even begun?
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.
