§ Sir Geoffrey Finsbergasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer which organisations or associations are customarily received by Treasury Ministers before the annual Budget is put to Parliament; and what criteria he uses in deciding whether such groups should be received by him personally or by other Ministers in his Department.
§ Mr. MooreTreasury Ministers receive a great many requests from representative bodies for meetings prior to each year's Budget. It is not possible to see them all. The122W general practice is to meet a small number of organisations representing a large number of people every year and to see other organisations less frequently. However, every Budget representation received by Treasury Ministers is carefully considered. The choice of Treasury Minister or Ministers for receiving delegations depends upon a number of factors, including the availability of Ministers and the nature of the representations.