Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what percentage of (a) ordinary and (b) named day written questions received a holding response from his Department in the first instance between 5 July 2024 and 22 November 2024.

The Department had a total of 2,270 written questions from the House of Commons due for answer between 5 July and 22 November 2024, the most received by any Government department in that period. These consisted of 1,761 ordinary written questions and 509 named day written questions. In the same period, the Department answered 60.0% of those named day written questions and 74.5% of those ordinary written questions within the required timescales.

It is Departmental procedure that holding answers are submitted for any named day written questions that are not answered within the required timescales; however, this is not done for ordinary written questions. In the period between 5 July and 22 November, 236 holding answers were submitted.

Named day performance has improved month-on-month since the summer recess, however we are determined to make the further improvements necessary to reach the standards expected by the Procedure Committee.