Committee publication · Correspondence · 14 May 2025
Letter from the Chair to the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs relating to WPQ performance, dated 3 April 2025
From: Procedure Committee
Inquiry: Written Parliamentary Questions: Departmental performance in Session 2024-26
Summary
The Procedure Committee Chair writes to the Foreign Secretary about the FCDO's declining performance in answering written parliamentary questions. Performance fell from 75–78% on-time responses (Nov 2023–May 2024) to 62–74% (July–December 2024), well below the committee's 85% standard. The Chair demands explanation by 2 May 2025 and warns of potential ministerial appearances if performance does not improve.
Key findings
- FCDO written parliamentary question response rates declined significantly in the first part of Session 2024–25: Named Day answers fell to 62% (from 72–75% in previous periods); Ordinary answers fell to 74% (from 77–78%).
- Both metrics are substantially below the Procedure Committee's accepted standard of 85% on-time response.
- The committee requests written explanation of the performance drop and details of remedial action by 2 May 2025.
- The committee warns it will require the Secretary of State to appear before it if performance issues persist.
Tone
CriticalTopics
Key actors
Cat Smith MP, David Lammy MP, Procedure Committee, FCDO (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office), House of Commons Table Office
Notable line
“… we were concerned to see a significant reduction, rather than an improvement, in the FCDO's performance.”
Key Quotes
“… the standard considered acceptable by us and by our predecessors is for 85% of questions to be responded to on time.”
“We will continue to monitor your Department's performance and, should these issues persist, we will expect that you would appear before us to discuss this further.”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗