Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what advice and guidance is available to ministers about answering written parliamentary questions.

Guidance on responding to Parliamentary Questions, and details of ministerial responsibilities, can be found on Gov.uk. This guidance states that Ministers must:

1. Adhere to the Ministerial Code
2. Give relevant information fully, as concisely as possible and in accordance with guidance on disproportionate cost.
3. Not omit information sought merely because disclosure could lead to political embarrassment or administrative inconvenience.
4. Provide an explanation if it is concluded that information should be withheld.
5. Take care to avoid answers which are literally true but likely to give rise to misleading inferences.
6. Provide responses to answers as follows:

• Named Day – on the day specified
• Ordinary Written – within 5 working days
• House of Lords Written – within 10 working days