Questions (Hansard, 21 November 1966)

§ 36. Sir Knox Cunningham
asked the Paymaster-General if he will insert a table in the OFFICIAL REPORT showing the various home information services about which he answers Questions in the House.

§ 37. Mr. Marten
asked the Paymaster-General if he will list the home information services about the co-ordination of which he will answer Questions.

§ Mr. Wigg
The list comprises the home information services of all Departments of State; for these I would refer the hon. Members to the many books of reference which contain the information they seek.

§ Sir Knox Cunningham
We are grateful for any information from the right hon. Gentleman, but does he realise that the Government are acting corruptly in paying him between £7,000 and £8,000 a year for doing nothing? What advice does he give to the Prime Minister other than advice about the tapping of Members' telephones?

§ Mr. Speaker
Order. That does not arise out of the Question.

§ Sir Knox Cunningham
On a point of order, Mr. Speaker. At Question Time last Thursday, the Prime Minister said definitely that he did consult his right hon. Friend and get advice from him.

§ Mr. Speaker
Order. The Questions are about the co-ordination of home 939 information services, and that matter does not arise on these Questions.

§ Mr. Marten
I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for his letter apologising for taking two weeks to answer a Question for Written Answer. Now that we have started with this list, will he agree that it might have been easier for the House if he had circulated details of these information services in the OFFICIAL REPORT? Second, may we know what his other jobs are? His hon. Friend the Member for Brixton (Mr. Lipton) has said that he is doing a very fine job. Why should the hon. Gentleman know what the Minister's job is while we do not?

§ Mr. Wigg
Taking the first part of that supplementary question, the reason why I did not publish the information in the OFFICIAL REPORT was that it was contained in HANSARD of 14th November and I assumed that the hon. Gentleman, between his researches, did occasionally read HANSARD.

§ Mr. Robert Cooke
Will the right hon. Gentleman consider publishing details of those home information services about which he will not answer Questions in the House? Will he put that in the OFFICIAL REPORT?

§ Mr. Wigg
The hon. Gentleman does not seem to appreciate that I do not answer Questions on the content of policy. I answer Questions about co-ordination, and when a Question is put down about co-ordination—no one has yet put one down—I shall answer it. The hon. Gentleman does not understand the difference between the two Administrations. The previous Government employed two Ministers to do a job which was essentially a party job. The present Administration does not believe that to be right.