Part of the debate – in the House of Lords at 3:55 pm on 22 July 2024.
Lord Callanan
Conservative
3:55,
22 July 2024
—about worthwhile reforms and I am delighted to see the audit reform and corporate governance Bill in the gracious Speech. I oversaw a development of these proposals when I was a BEIS Minister but, unfortunately, I failed at the time to persuade No. 10 that they mattered enough to make the legislative programme. It is good to see them back and I welcome them.
The lockdown is now three years ago and the global financial crisis is but a distant memory. The last of post-Covid inflation has ended, the deficit is falling, we are close to full employment and there is every reason to be optimistic about the future. If Labour can deliver on what it promised, grow the economy, tread more lightly and, over time, bring taxes down, it will have the support of this front bench.
The first bench on either side of the House of Commons, reserved for ministers and leaders of the principal political parties.
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.
