Parliament & Executive: Questions
Political Studies: Edexcel A Level, topic 11.2.1
Parliament Holding Executive to Account: Questions
Parliament has many ways of holding the government to account, including through questions to ministers, select committees, voting and a vote of no confidence.
Minister’s questions
- Questions are asked of government ministers by MPs and House of Lords Peers.
- Ministers’ questions take place on a rota during the parliamentary week, where ministers answer questions from backbenchers about their department.
- Ministers’ questions put pressure on government ministers to know all of their department’s work.
Prime Minister’s Question Time
- Prime Minister’s Question Time (PMQs), which takes place for 30 minutes each Wednesday when the House of Commons is sitting.
- MPs ask the Prime Minister questions on important issues.
- The leader of the opposition asks the prime minister six questions before MPs ask questions on any government affairs.
PMQs benefits
- PMQs provides direct answers from the PM to questions asked by MPs and is an important way of holding the prime minister accountable for the government’s work.
- The PM must be briefed in detail on major issues which are in the interests of the public as they do not know the questions which will be asked in advance.
PMQs criticism: Punch and Judy
- It could be argued that PMQs is more about political point scoring than effective scrutiny of the Prime Minister and government.
- PMQs has been named ‘Punch and Judy’ politics because it is often a shouting match between politicians in front of the media.
- Speaker John Bercow called Prime Minister’s questions a “shouting match every Wednesday lunchtime”.
PMQ's criticism: questions
- Members of Parliament from the government’s party will ask the prime minister planted questions to make the government and the prime minister appear strong in front of voters.
- PM David Cameron’s aides sent emails to Conservative MPs with questions for them to ask at Prime Minister’s Questions including on the benefits of the government’s economic policies.
- This reduces the time available for genuine scrutiny.
Test yourself on Parliament & Executive: Questions
Why is Prime Minister's Question Time viewed as ineffective?
What is the name given to Prime Minister's Question Time because it is often a shouting match between politicians?