Part of the debate – in the House of Lords at 3:13 pm on 28 June 2005.
Lord Laidlaw
Conservative
3:13,
28 June 2005
My Lords, I am comforted by the Minister's assurances, but in practice the deficit between taxation revenue and public spending in 2005–06 will be approximately £57 billion, using the Treasury figures. There are only three ways to balance those payments: first, by increasing taxation more than has been predicted; secondly, by reducing public spending by a far greater amount than the Gershon review; and, thirdly, by increasing borrowing more than forecast. Which one of those three methods will the Government use to balance the books in 2005–06?
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.
