§ Mr. Swainasked the Minister of Technology if he will define the duties and responsibilities of the Ministers in his Department.
§ Mr. BennThere has been no significant change in the Ministerial responsibilities within my Department since I answered a Question on this by the hon. Member for Gloucestershire, South (Mr. Corfield) on 11th July, 1968.
My hon. Friend the Minister of State will act generally as my deputy. He will have special responsibilities for the aviation work of the Department, for nuclear energy, hovercraft and for Western European technological collaboration.
Broadly, my hon. Friend the Member for Middlesbrough, West (Dr. Bray) is concerned with the electronics, telecommunications, computer, machine tools, manufacturing machinery, electrical and chemical plant industries and with the Department's overall relationship with the National Research Development Corporation, while my hon. Friend the Member for The Wrekin (Mr. Fowler) is concerned with research policy and establishments, the motor vehicles, shipbuilding and general engineering industries, and export questions generally.—[Vol. 768, c. 1.24.]