HC Deb 24 January 1957 vol 563 cc393-5
49. Mr. Jay

asked the Prime Minister what are the duties and responsibilities of the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.

54. Mr. G. M. Thomson

asked the Prime Minister to what extent the duties of the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster will involve accepting responsibility for information services at present under the control of separate Departments.

The Prime Minister

In addition to his responsibilities for the Duchy of Lancaster, my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Duchy will be responsible for the co-ordination of Government information services at home and abroad. This does not affect the existing responsibility of Ministers for their own information services.

Mr. Jay

Does that mean that the Chancellor of the Duchy has no job of his own, or is it his function to explain the jobs of other Ministers? If so, can we know which one?

The Prime Minister

The Chancellor has, of course, the work—not very heavy work—always attached to the post of the Chancellor of the Duchy. It has always been the practice to use this post for the Minister to do other work. I think there is general agreement that on information, particularly in co-ordination between foreign information and home information, there is useful work to be done, and I am sure that my right hon. Friend will do it very well.

Mr. Thomson

Could the Minister be a great deal more precise about the exact duties of his right hon. Friend? Is he in fact to be a public relations officer for the present Government, whose job will be to whitewash the policies of the present Government? Is the Prime Minister aware that this appointment is a very serious break with all peace-time precedents in this country?

The Prime Minister

No, I think it is a very good arrangement, and I think it will be very valuable in the realm of information. It has no connection with any party propaganda. [HON. MEMBERS: "Oh."] There are hon. Members. I know, who think we ought to go back to having a full Ministry of Information. I do not share that view, but I do think that co-ordination of the work done by the P.R.O.'s of the different Departments, especially in regard to our overseas work, is a very useful thing.

Mr. Bevan

It might well be desirable to have a Minister responsible for making clear the work of the Government to people overseas and here, however that may affect their relations with the Government subsequently, but what we should like to know is what kind of Questions we can put to the Minister in this respect, how they are to be delineated from the Departmental responsibility of Ministers?

The Prime Minister

I think the only way would be by trial and error. I have always found over many years that the Clerks at the Table are very helpful in these matters.

Mr. Bevan

Further to that answer, which was not an answer at all, the Prime Minister has obviously thought about the implications of this appointment, and therefore must have formed some views as to the area upon which we can put to the Minister Questions which would not be Departmental. Would the right hon. Gentleman be able to guide the House in this respect, because trial and error is hardly a good way of doing it?

The Prime Minister

I will put it this way. The responsibility of Ministers for their own information services is unaffected, and so Questions on those particular information services would, of course, be addressed to the Ministers, but there are some Questions on the specific co-ordinating functions of the Chancellor of the Duchy which he will answer.

Mr. Bevan

I think hon. Members in all parts of the House will agree that what we are trying to do is to facilitate their work in this House. [HON. MEMBERS: "Oh."] Certainly, unless hon. Members opposite want to live in their habitual obscurity. What we want to know is if the right hon. Gentleman will take an early opportunity—we know he has been very rushed in the last few weeks—of telling us rather more clearly the kind of territory on which we can engage the Minister.

The Prime Minister

I have had a very long friendship with the right hon. Member in this House, and I have never found it difficult for him to find territory on which to engage a Government, even his own Government.

Mr. Jay

Can we at least know whether in future the foreign information service will be responsible to the Foreign Secretary or to this new Minister of Propaganda?

The Prime Minister

It will be in exactly the same position as the other services of each individual Ministry. It will be responsible to the Foreign Secretary, but the work of co-ordination will be done through the Chancellor of the Duchy.