Part of the debate – in the House of Lords at 2:30 pm on 15 September 2003.
Lord Dholakia
Party Chair, Liberal Democrats
2:30,
15 September 2003
My Lords, the secrecy surrounding full publication of the report must be a matter of serious concern. The review and its terms of reference were announced to Parliament, and Parliament would appreciate a report being made to it. Instead, all we have is a summary of some of the key findings. Does the Minister accept that NASS has come under severe criticism from voluntary and statutory organisations and that there has been a very critical report from the National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux? How will Parliament assess the progress being made unless it knows whether or not these issues have been identified and addressed by the Government?
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.
