Part of the debate – in the Scottish Parliament at on 22 March 2011.
Jim Tolson
Liberal Democrat
While remembering that this is a major project for both my Constituency and Scotland, I hope that the Minister will agree that the environmental effects on my constituents in the Limekilns and Charlestown areas should be minimised as part of any approval that the Government might give to the Rosyth container terminal. What assurances can the minister give my constituents in that regard?
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.
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
