Leader of the House of Lords<p>It is the responsibility of individual ministers to decide what answers they give to Questions for Written Answer (QWAs), and they are of course accountable to the House for those answers. That direct accountability is important: that is why Ministers in this House must provide personally signed answers to members. The Ministerial Code states that <em>“It is of paramount importance that Ministers give accurate and truthful information to Parliament”.<br><br></em>As Leader of the House I have a particular responsibility to encourage Ministers and their departments to be punctual in answering written questions. My office immediately approach departments who have not responded to questions after 10 working days, and remain in contact with them until the questions are answered. At the end of this Session I will publish data on the annual performance of departments on their promptness in dealing with QWAs.</p><p> </p>Baroness Stowell of Beeston2014-12-03false2014-12-03T12:49:49.887Z92Leader of the House of Lords2014-11-19Written Questions2House of LordsTo ask the Leader of the House what steps she takes to ensure the quality of answers to parliamentary questions; and what assessment she has made of the length of time taken to provide them.falseLord LairdHL2945Leader of the House of Lords<p>I take very seriously my responsibility as Leader of the House to encourage Ministers to be punctual in answering written questions. My office immediately approach departments who have not responded to questions after 10 working days, and remain in contact with them until the questions are answered. This process was followed with HM Treasury for the 12 questions that remained unanswered after 10 working days on 11 March. All of those questions have now been answered. At the end of this Session I will publish data on each department’s promptness in dealing with Questions for Written Answer to allow for proper scrutiny of their performance.</p>Baroness Stowell of Beeston2015-03-24false2015-03-24T13:41:23.26Z92Leader of the House of Lords2015-03-11Treasury: Written Questions2House of LordsTo ask the Leader of the House what discussions she has had with HM Treasury in the light of 12 of the 15 Written Questions awaiting answer on 11 March for more than the target 10 working days being to HM Treasury.falseLord JoplingHL5645Leader of the House of Lords<p>As Leader of the House, I have a particular responsibility to encourage departments to be punctual in answering written questions, but the content of each answer is a matter for the minister concerned. All Ministers are accountable to the House for those answers. That direct accountability is important: that is why Ministers in this House must provide personally signed answers to members.</p><p> </p><p>To inform Ministers in answering questions put to them, the Ministerial Code says that “It is of paramount importance that Ministers give accurate and truthful information to Parliament”. It also makes clear that “Ministers should be as open as possible with Parliament and the public, refusing to provide information only when disclosure would not be in the public interest”. In addition, the longstanding rules of this House on Questions for Written Answer (rules that the House reaffirmed in agreeing to the Procedure Committee’s 5<sup>th</sup> Report of the 2014-15 Session) set out that all answers should be complete and comprehensible.</p><p> </p><p>If any member has particular concerns about a response that they have received that they consider does not adhere to these rules, I would encourage them to raise it with me directly.</p><p> </p>Baroness Stowell of Beeston2015-03-24HL5810false2015-03-24T13:45:04.12Z92Leader of the House of Lords2015-03-13Written Questions2House of LordsTo ask the Leader of the House what guidance she issues to Departments in respect of their providing full answers to questions for written answer, particularly when failure to answer has been followed up.falseBaroness Gardner of ParkesHL5717Leader of the House of Lords<p>As Leader of the House, I have a particular responsibility to encourage departments to be punctual in answering written questions, but the content of each answer is a matter for the minister concerned. All Ministers are accountable to the House for those answers. That direct accountability is important: that is why Ministers in this House must provide personally signed answers to members.</p><p> </p><p>To inform Ministers in answering questions put to them, the Ministerial Code says that “It is of paramount importance that Ministers give accurate and truthful information to Parliament”. It also makes clear that “Ministers should be as open as possible with Parliament and the public, refusing to provide information only when disclosure would not be in the public interest”. In addition, the longstanding rules of this House on Questions for Written Answer (rules that the House reaffirmed in agreeing to the Procedure Committee’s 5<sup>th</sup> Report of the 2014-15 Session) set out that all answers should be complete and comprehensible.</p><p> </p><p>If any member has particular concerns about a response that they have received that they consider does not adhere to these rules, I would encourage them to raise it with me directly.</p><p> </p>Baroness Stowell of Beeston2015-03-24HL5717false2015-03-24T13:45:04.013Z92Leader of the House of Lords2015-03-17Written Questions2House of LordsTo ask Her Majesty’s Government whether their policy is that all Parliamentary Written Questions should be answered in full in all parts.falseLord LairdHL5810Leader of the House of Lords<p>The second largest opposition party is neither formally defined nor given specific speaking rights by the Standing Orders of the House or the Companion to the Standing Orders. The Companion to Standing Orders does, however, set out several areas where the “opposition front benches” have the right to speak for longer than backbenchers or have rights to speak at specific points in proceedings.<br><br>Of the political parties represented in the House, only the Official Opposition and the Liberal Democrat group operate frontbenches of a size that permits them to shadow each Government department. It is for that reason that the definition of “opposition frontbenches” that applied in practice before the 2010 Parliament has been reverted to in this Parliament. <br><br>It remains open to any member who wishes to propose a change to current arrangements to make representations to me and/or make a submission to the Procedure Committee.</p>Baroness Stowell of Beeston2015-07-20HL1136HL1137HL1138HL1139HL1588false2015-07-20T16:47:20.41Z92Leader of the House of Lords2015-07-06House of Lords: Parliamentary Procedure2House of LordsTo ask the Leader of the House whether the speaking rights of the second largest opposition party front bench in the House of Lords can be reallocated to the opposition party with the second highest votes cast at the last general election.falseLord Campbell-SavoursHL1135Leader of the House of Lords<p>The second largest opposition party is neither formally defined nor given specific speaking rights by the Standing Orders of the House or the Companion to the Standing Orders. The Companion to Standing Orders does, however, set out several areas where the “opposition front benches” have the right to speak for longer than backbenchers or have rights to speak at specific points in proceedings.<br><br>Of the political parties represented in the House, only the Official Opposition and the Liberal Democrat group operate frontbenches of a size that permits them to shadow each Government department. It is for that reason that the definition of “opposition frontbenches” that applied in practice before the 2010 Parliament has been reverted to in this Parliament. <br><br>It remains open to any member who wishes to propose a change to current arrangements to make representations to me and/or make a submission to the Procedure Committee.</p>Baroness Stowell of Beeston2015-07-20HL1135HL1137HL1138HL1139HL1588false2015-07-20T16:47:20.49Z92Leader of the House of Lords2015-07-06House of Lords: Parliamentary Procedure2House of LordsTo ask the Leader of the House what rules apply, and what advice is sought, when a political party seeks to establish or assume front-bench speaking rights in the House of Lords; and when the rules were first established.falseLord Campbell-SavoursHL1136Leader of the House of Lords<p>The second largest opposition party is neither formally defined nor given specific speaking rights by the Standing Orders of the House or the Companion to the Standing Orders. The Companion to Standing Orders does, however, set out several areas where the “opposition front benches” have the right to speak for longer than backbenchers or have rights to speak at specific points in proceedings.<br><br>Of the political parties represented in the House, only the Official Opposition and the Liberal Democrat group operate frontbenches of a size that permits them to shadow each Government department. It is for that reason that the definition of “opposition frontbenches” that applied in practice before the 2010 Parliament has been reverted to in this Parliament. <br><br>It remains open to any member who wishes to propose a change to current arrangements to make representations to me and/or make a submission to the Procedure Committee.</p>Baroness Stowell of Beeston2015-07-20HL1135HL1136HL1138HL1139HL1588false2015-07-20T16:47:20.583Z92Leader of the House of Lords2015-07-06House of Lords: Parliamentary Procedure2House of LordsTo ask the Leader of the House what cross-party discussions have taken place regarding the recognition of opposition front-bench speaking rights for Liberal Democrat spokesmen in the House of Lords.falseLord Campbell-SavoursHL1137Leader of the House of Lords<p>The second largest opposition party is neither formally defined nor given specific speaking rights by the Standing Orders of the House or the Companion to the Standing Orders. The Companion to Standing Orders does, however, set out several areas where the “opposition front benches” have the right to speak for longer than backbenchers or have rights to speak at specific points in proceedings.<br><br>Of the political parties represented in the House, only the Official Opposition and the Liberal Democrat group operate frontbenches of a size that permits them to shadow each Government department. It is for that reason that the definition of “opposition frontbenches” that applied in practice before the 2010 Parliament has been reverted to in this Parliament. <br><br>It remains open to any member who wishes to propose a change to current arrangements to make representations to me and/or make a submission to the Procedure Committee.</p>Baroness Stowell of Beeston2015-07-20HL1135HL1136HL1137HL1139HL1588false2015-07-20T16:47:20.693Z92Leader of the House of Lords2015-07-06House of Lords: Parliamentary Procedure2House of LordsTo ask the Leader of the House whether UKIP Peers in the House of Lords are to be granted opposition front-bench speaking rights; and if not, why not.falseLord Campbell-SavoursHL1138Leader of the House of Lords<p>The second largest opposition party is neither formally defined nor given specific speaking rights by the Standing Orders of the House or the Companion to the Standing Orders. The Companion to Standing Orders does, however, set out several areas where the “opposition front benches” have the right to speak for longer than backbenchers or have rights to speak at specific points in proceedings.<br><br>Of the political parties represented in the House, only the Official Opposition and the Liberal Democrat group operate frontbenches of a size that permits them to shadow each Government department. It is for that reason that the definition of “opposition frontbenches” that applied in practice before the 2010 Parliament has been reverted to in this Parliament. <br><br>It remains open to any member who wishes to propose a change to current arrangements to make representations to me and/or make a submission to the Procedure Committee.</p>Baroness Stowell of Beeston2015-07-20HL1135HL1136HL1137HL1138HL1588false2015-07-20T16:47:20.793Z92Leader of the House of Lords2015-07-06House of Lords: Parliamentary Procedure2House of LordsTo ask the Leader of the House whether the percentage of the vote cast for a political party at a general election is a consideration in deciding whether a political party is granted opposition front-bench speaking rights in the House of Lords.falseLord Campbell-SavoursHL1139Leader of the House of Lords<p>The second largest opposition party is neither formally defined nor given specific speaking rights by the Standing Orders of the House or the Companion to the Standing Orders. The Companion to Standing Orders does, however, set out several areas where the “opposition front benches” have the right to speak for longer than backbenchers or have rights to speak at specific points in proceedings.<br><br>Of the political parties represented in the House, only the Official Opposition and the Liberal Democrat group operate frontbenches of a size that permits them to shadow each Government department. It is for that reason that the definition of “opposition frontbenches” that applied in practice before the 2010 Parliament has been reverted to in this Parliament. <br><br>It remains open to any member who wishes to propose a change to current arrangements to make representations to me and/or make a submission to the Procedure Committee.</p>Baroness Stowell of Beeston2015-07-20HL1135HL1136HL1137HL1138HL1139false2015-07-20T16:47:20.883Z92Leader of the House of Lords2015-07-17House of Lords: Political Parties2House of LordsTo ask the Leader of the House on what basis a political party with 7.9 per cent of the national vote at a general election holds front bench status in the House of Lords.falseLord Campbell-SavoursHL1588100155