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Written Question
Afghanistan: Development Aid
Friday 22nd December 2023

Asked by: Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, with reference to paragraph 199 of the Guide to Parliamentary Work, published by the Office of the Leader of the House of Commons, if he will he make an assessment of the adequacy of his Department’s performance against that paragraph in his Answer of 21 November 2023 to Question 1578 on Afghanistan; and if he will take steps to improve the adherence of his Department to the principles set out in that Guide.

Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)

The FCDO holds data on how much aid we have provided for Afghanistan and our commitment to ensure that at least 50 per cent of those reached with our aid are women and girls. The FCDO does not hold the breakdown of how much UK aid has been allocated specifically to women-led organisations based in Afghanistan. We have not withheld information on funding allocations. The department is confident that the answer provided to PQ 1578 adequately meets the guidelines laid down by the Leader of the Commons in the Guide to Parliamentary Work.

The FCDO attaches great importance to the effective handling of Written Parliamentary Questions (WPQs) and recognises the importance of Parliamentary scrutiny.


Written Question
Leader of the House of Commons: Cybersecurity
Monday 11th September 2023

Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)

Question to the Leader of the House:

To ask the Leader of the House, what steps your department is taking to enhance cybersecurity and protect personal data

Answered by Penny Mordaunt - Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons

The Office of the Leader of the House of Commons is part of the Cabinet Office. I refer the Hon. Member to the response to be provided by the Cabinet Office (196755).


Written Question
Leader of the House of Commons: Written Questions
Thursday 7th September 2023

Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)

Question to the Leader of the House:

To ask the Leader of the House, what data their Department holds on the average response time to written parliamentary questions in the last six months; and what assessment they have made of the adequacy of that response time.

Answered by Penny Mordaunt - Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons

Parliament has a right to hold Ministers to account and, as Leader of the House, I expect Government Ministers to respond quickly and effectively to written parliamentary questions. I will continue to drive that message and I encourage members who get an unsatisfactory response to write to me and I will take this up for any Member who does not get a proper response.

Data on response times to written parliamentary questions is held by the House, not government, and the ​Procedure ​Committee has a strong track record of calling Ministers in to look at​ departmental​ performance where there are issues​. Their regular reporting of performance continues to be an effective tool​. ​I note the Procedure Committee's report from earlier in this session on written parliamentary questions during the 2021-22 session​ and ​I was pleased to read that the number of answers provided on time has improved from the 2019-21 session. ​I hope we will see this improvement continue when the Committee publishes its next report following the current session. ​

I recognise that my office and I have a role to play in making representations to Government on behalf of the House of Commons, and have taken a number actions:

  • In line with the practice of my predecessors, I have written to all members of Cabinet.
  • I met with all departmental Permanent Secretaries where I reiterated the importance of substantive and timely answers to written parliamentary questions.
  • I participated in a ‘Leading in Parliament’ session with Senior Civil Servants.
  • I met with the Home Office Permanent Secretary following a number of concerns raised during Business Questions.
  • In November 2022 my office published an updated Guide to Parliamentary Work which is available on Gov.uk and includes guidance for civil servants on answering written parliamentary questions (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guide-to-parliamentary-work).
  • My office oversees the Parliamentary Clerks’ Working Group, which brings together all departmental Parliamentary Clerks from across Whitehall to discuss topical issues and share best practice.

The Parliamentary Capability Team in the Cabinet Office also provides training on managing parliamentary work to civil servants of all departments and grades, including blended learning courses on Written Parliamentary Questions and tailored workshops for Senior Civil Servants. Since April 2022, 1012 civil servants from across government have attended training provided by the Parliamentary Capability Team on managing Written Parliamentary Questions.


Written Question
Leader of the House of Commons: Written Questions
Thursday 7th September 2023

Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)

Question to the Leader of the House:

To ask the Leader of the House, what steps their Department is taking to improve response times to written parliamentary questions.

Answered by Penny Mordaunt - Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons

Parliament has a right to hold Ministers to account and, as Leader of the House, I expect Government Ministers to respond quickly and effectively to written parliamentary questions. I will continue to drive that message and I encourage members who get an unsatisfactory response to write to me and I will take this up for any Member who does not get a proper response.

Data on response times to written parliamentary questions is held by the House, not government, and the ​Procedure ​Committee has a strong track record of calling Ministers in to look at​ departmental​ performance where there are issues​. Their regular reporting of performance continues to be an effective tool​. ​I note the Procedure Committee's report from earlier in this session on written parliamentary questions during the 2021-22 session​ and ​I was pleased to read that the number of answers provided on time has improved from the 2019-21 session. ​I hope we will see this improvement continue when the Committee publishes its next report following the current session. ​

I recognise that my office and I have a role to play in making representations to Government on behalf of the House of Commons, and have taken a number actions:

  • In line with the practice of my predecessors, I have written to all members of Cabinet.
  • I met with all departmental Permanent Secretaries where I reiterated the importance of substantive and timely answers to written parliamentary questions.
  • I participated in a ‘Leading in Parliament’ session with Senior Civil Servants.
  • I met with the Home Office Permanent Secretary following a number of concerns raised during Business Questions.
  • In November 2022 my office published an updated Guide to Parliamentary Work which is available on Gov.uk and includes guidance for civil servants on answering written parliamentary questions (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guide-to-parliamentary-work).
  • My office oversees the Parliamentary Clerks’ Working Group, which brings together all departmental Parliamentary Clerks from across Whitehall to discuss topical issues and share best practice.

The Parliamentary Capability Team in the Cabinet Office also provides training on managing parliamentary work to civil servants of all departments and grades, including blended learning courses on Written Parliamentary Questions and tailored workshops for Senior Civil Servants. Since April 2022, 1012 civil servants from across government have attended training provided by the Parliamentary Capability Team on managing Written Parliamentary Questions.


Written Question
Government Departments: Correspondence
Thursday 7th September 2023

Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)

Question to the Leader of the House:

To ask the Leader of the House, what steps she is taking to help ensure that Members' requests for assistance on ministerial correspondence are addressed in a timely manner.

Answered by Penny Mordaunt - Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons

Parliament has a right to hold Ministers to account and, as Leader of the House, I expect Government Ministers to respond quickly and effectively to Members’ correspondence. I will continue to drive that message and I encourage members who get an unsatisfactory response to write to me and I will take this up for any Member who does not get a proper response.

I recognise that my office and I have a role to play in making representations to Government on behalf of the House of Commons, and have taken a number of actions:

  • I write to Cabinet colleagues every week following Business Questions to take up the concerns raised by Members, including in relation to delayed responses to correspondence.
  • I have met with all departmental Permanent Secretaries where I reiterated the importance of substantive and timely answers to written parliamentary questions.
  • I met separately with the Home Office Permanent Secretary following a number of concerns raised during Business Questions.
  • I participated in a ‘Leading in Parliament’ session with Senior Civil Servants.
  • In line with the practice of my predecessors, I have written to all members of Cabinet.
  • My office oversees the Parliamentary Clerks’ Working Group, which brings together all departmental Parliamentary Clerks from across Whitehall to discuss topical issues and share best practice.

The Parliamentary Capability Team in the Cabinet Office also provides training on managing parliamentary work to civil servants of all departments and grades, including blended learning courses on ministerial correspondence and tailored workshops for Senior Civil Servants. Since April 2022, 1,160 civil servants from across government have attended training provided by the Parliamentary Capability Team on managing Ministerial Correspondence and Written Parliamentary Questions.

As per the Cabinet Office’s Guide to Handling Correspondence (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/handling-government-correspondence-guidance), departments and agencies should aim to respond to correspondence within a 20-working day target deadline. The Cabinet Office published data on this for 2022 for all government departments on GOV.UK in March 2023, and will be publishing data for Q1 and Q2 2023 shortly. The 2022 data can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/data-on-responses-to-correspondence-from-mps-and-peers-2022.


Written Question
Government Departments: Correspondence
Thursday 18th May 2023

Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Labour - Canterbury)

Question to the Leader of the House:

To ask the Leader of the House, what discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on ensuring that their Departments meet deadlines for replying to Members’ correspondence.

Answered by Penny Mordaunt - Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons

Parliament has a right to hold Ministers to account and, as Leader of the House, I expect Government Ministers to respond quickly and effectively to Members’ correspondence. I will continue to drive that message and I encourage members who get an unsatisfactory response to write to me and I will take this up for any Member who does not get a proper response.

I recognise that my office and I have a role to play in making representations to Government on behalf of the House of Commons, and have taken a number of actions:

  • Over the 2022 Summer recess my office conducted a series of discussions across Whitehall regarding the importance of timely and quality responses to Members.
  • In line with the practice of my predecessors, I have written to all members of Cabinet.
  • I participated in a ‘Leading in Parliament’ session with Senior Civil Servants.
  • I met with the Home Office Permanent Secretary following a number of concerns raised during Business Questions, and I have been pleased to note an improvement in performance in that department’s statistics.
  • In March I met with all departmental Permanent Secretaries where I reiterated the importance of substantive and timely answers to correspondence.
  • My office oversees the Parliamentary Clerks’ Working Group, which brings together all departmental Parliamentary Clerks from across Whitehall to discuss topical issues and share best practice.

The Parliamentary Capability Team in the Cabinet Office also provides training on managing parliamentary work to civil servants of all departments and grades, including blended learning courses on ministerial correspondence and tailored workshops for Senior Civil Servants. Since April 2022, 686 civil servants from across government have attended training provided by the Parliamentary Capability Team on managing Ministerial Correspondence and Written Parliamentary Questions.

In addition, the Cabinet Office Guide to Handling Correspondence, which is available on Gov.uk, includes guidance for civil servants on how to handle correspondence from MPs, Peers, members of the devolved legislatures and members of the public (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/handling-government-correspondence-guidance).


Written Question
Government Departments: Written Questions
Monday 27th February 2023

Asked by: Kim Leadbeater (Labour - Batley and Spen)

Question to the Leader of the House:

To ask the Leader of the House, what steps she is taking to help ensure Departments provide substantive and timely answers to written parliamentary questions.

Answered by Penny Mordaunt - Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons

Parliament has a right to hold Ministers to account and, as Leader of the House, I expect Government Ministers to respond quickly and effectively to written parliamentary questions. I will continue to drive that message and I encourage members who get an unsatisfactory response to write to me and I will take this up for any Member who does not get a proper response.

The ​Procedure ​Committee has a strong track record of calling Ministers in to look at​ departmental​ performance where there are issues​ and their regular reporting of performance continues to be an effective tool​. ​I note the Procedure Committee's report from earlier in this session on written parliamentary questions during the 2021-22 session​ and ​I was pleased to read that the number of answers provided on time has improved from the 2019-21 session. ​I hope we will see this improvement continue in the current session. ​However, there remains room for improvement and I hope departments and Ministers will consider how best to ensure resources are adequately deployed to improve performance.

I recognise that my office and I have a role to play in making representations to Government on behalf of the House of Commons, and have taken a number actions in recent months:

  • Over the 2022 Summer recess my office conducted a series of discussions across Whitehall regarding the importance of timely and quality responses to Members.
  • In line with the practice of my predecessors, I have written to all members of Cabinet.
  • I participated in a ‘Leading in Parliament’ session with Senior Civil Servants.
  • I met with the Home Office Permanent Secretary following a number of concerns raised during Business Questions, and I have been pleased to note an improvement in performance in that department’s performance statistics. Changes include regular briefings on PQ performance to Director Generals; a further training offer to civil servants to improve performance and quality of responses; and investment in software to help manage PQ allocation and clearance processes.
  • In November 2022 my office published an updated Guide to Parliamentary Work which is available on Gov.uk and includes guidance for civil servants on answering written parliamentary questions, reflecting concerns raised by the Procedure Committee (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guide-to-parliamentary-work).
  • My office oversees the Parliamentary Clerks’ Working Group, which brings together all departmental Parliamentary Clerks from across Whitehall to discuss topical issues and share best practice. During its last meeting in December 2022, my office expressed my concerns and reiterated the need for improvements in the timeliness of responses to parliamentary questions to be maintained.
  • The Parliamentary Capability Team in the Cabinet Office also provides training on managing parliamentary work to civil servants of all departments and grades, including blended learning courses on Written Parliamentary Questions and tailored workshops for Senior Civil Servants. Since April 2022, 896 civil servants from across government have attended training provided by the Parliamentary Capability Team on managing Written Parliamentary Questions.
  • I will be meeting with all departmental Permanent Secretaries in the coming weeks where I will reiterate the importance of substantive and timely answers to written parliamentary questions.

Written Question
Members: Correspondence and Written Questions
Friday 18th November 2022

Asked by: Thangam Debbonaire (Labour - Bristol West)

Question to the Leader of the House:

To ask the Leader of the House, what work the Parliamentary Capability Team has been doing with government departments to ensure timely and quality responses to Written Parliamentary Questions and correspondence from MPs.

Answered by Penny Mordaunt - Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons

The Parliamentary Capability Team (PCT) provides training on managing parliamentary work to civil servants of all departments and grades. As part of this work, it offers blended learning courses on Written Parliamentary Questions and Ministerial Correspondence, and tailored workshops for Senior Civil Servants (SCS) on these processes. Since April 2020, this training has been attended by 2,303 civil servants. The PCT also supports departmental parliamentary teams to develop training on department-specific processes for this work.

Over the course of the Summer recess, the former Deputy Leader of the House of Commons also visited multiple government departments with the PCT and spoke about the importance of departments providing full and timely responses to Written Parliamentary Questions and correspondence from Members of Parliament.


Written Question
Leader of the House of Commons: Written Questions
Friday 5th March 2021

Asked by: Kate Osamor (Independent - Edmonton)

Question to the Leader of the House:

To ask the Leader of the House, whether he has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the time taken to answer Questions (a) 102133 tabled on 9 October 2020 and (b) 105481 to 105483 tabled on 19 October 2020.

Answered by Jacob Rees-Mogg

During the height of the pandemic, departments were under significant pressure when replying to written questions and correspondence and I had some sympathy with departments. Nevertheless, members must receive full and timely responses when they request information. I continue to raise the hon. members specific questions with the Department for Health and Social Care and have impressed upon it the need to answer these questions as a matter of urgency.


Written Question
Department of Health and Social Care: Written Questions
Monday 18th January 2021

Asked by: Sarah Owen (Labour - Luton North)

Question to the Leader of the House:

To ask the Leader of the House, if he will publish the average time taken for the Department of Health and Social Care to answer written questions from hon. Members in (a) September 2020, (b) October 2020, (c) November 2020 and (d) December 2020.

Answered by Jacob Rees-Mogg

This information is not held by the Office of the Leader of the House of Commons. The Procedure Committee routinely publishes information regarding the performance of departments in answering written questions following the end of each parliamentary session, the last of which was published on 9 October 2020 for the 2017-19 and 2019 sessions. This is available at: https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5801/cmselect/cmproced/790/79002.htm

I have written to all members of the Cabinet to remind them of the importance of timely and helpful responses to written questions. I encourage members who get an unsatisfactory or late response to write to me and I will take this up on their behalf.