In the House of Commons, oral questions on international development occur once every four weeks (on a Wednesday at 11.30am) when Parliament is in session. DFID receives notice of its oral questions on the Thursday before, and briefing is due within 24 hours on the Friday at 12 noon. Deadlines are tight to ensure Ministers have the maximum amount of time for preparation and must be respected. We receive 15 questions.
In the House of Lords, oral questions can be raised at any time. These are known as "starred questions".
Prime Minister's (PM) Questions are held every Wednesday (at 12 noon) when Parliament is in session. Deadlines are short, notice of requirements are often given on the Wednesday morning. MST will advise on what is required.
1. For all of the tasks below, Deputy Directors through Heads of Department/Heads of Overseas Offices/Group Leaders must clear all briefing and submit through Ministers. Deadlines must be respected to meet box deadlines. Those clearing briefing are ultimately responsible for ensuring formatting - as well as content - requirements are met. Task assigned to: All Staff, Director, Head of Department, Head of Overseas Office
2. For Oral Questions in the Commons full briefing is required on the first twelve questions. As a minimum, briefing must comprise the following sections: the answer, one page of key facts , FCO political script (where appropriate) and index of supplementary information. Where relevant, background information must also be included. The remaining three questions will be treated for written reply to be answered on the day of Orals. These three questions only need a draft answer and one page of key facts on the topic. Orals will be commissioned using CHAPTER. Templates for each Minister will be provided through CHAPTER. All briefing should be submitted on CHAPTER.Task assigned to: All Staff, Director, Head of Department, Head of Overseas Office
3. Answers for Orals in the Commons must be no more than 70 words, clear, concise and contain no jargon. For the briefing acronyms must be spelled out the first time they are used. The format must be double spaced and the font Arial pt 14 Task assigned to: All Staff
4. Supplementary topics and information must be drafted to cover all issues. You should consider lines to take and beartraps likely to be raised around the original question. Supplementary information must include topical lines,Teams should consult with Press Office and MST for a steer.Task assigned to: All Staff
5. The background section must put the question into context and contain any relevant information (including Foreign and Commonwealth Office briefing for country-specific questions) Task assigned to: All Staff6. Answers and briefings must be cleared at Deputy Director level, through Heads of Department/Heads of Overseas Offices/Group Leaders Task assigned to: All Staff
7. All briefing must be submitted through CHAPTER, once approved at senior level by 12:00hrs on the FRIDAY before Oral Questions Task assigned to: All Staff, Head of Department, Head of Overseas Office
8. Junior Ministers will have briefing meetings on the Monday/Tuesday before Orals. SoS does not have a briefing meeting, but asks for a nominated contact should he have any questions. Heads of Department should ensure staff are available for briefing meetingsTask assigned to: All Staff, Head of Department, Head of Overseas Office
9. Additional background requested at the briefing meeting must be submitted using CHAPTER links by 14:00 on Tuesday. Task assigned to: All Staff
10. "Starred" (House of Lords) Oral Questions are tabled on a regular basis (Topical Questions are drawn each week, and we may only get 1 day notice). MST will set briefing deadlines and provide guidance/templates to use. Task assigned to: All Staff
11. Answers for Lords Oral Questions must be the maximum length allowed (70 words), concise and clear. All acronyms must be spelt out in full Task assigned to: All Staff
12. MST will provide a template for briefing. This will include the answer, key points and supplementary infomation. Supplementary answers must be provided (with index). Lords Oral Questions are tabled to the Government, rather than to a single Department. Briefing will need co-ordination with other Government Departments, particularly with FCO, MOD, DECC, Home Office for lines on the topic. The political and country context must be covered. Briefing must be cleared at Deputy Director levelTask assigned to: All Staff, Director, Head of Department, Head of Overseas Office
13. Officials will need to brief the DFID Lords Spokesperson orally in advance of the question.Task assigned to: All Staff, Head of Department, Head of Overseas Office
14. Prime Ministers Questions are held every Wednesday at 12.00pm. Officials may be asked to provide input at very short notice (sometimes less than an hour on a Wednesday morning). Briefing will be commissioned and submitted to Number 10 by MST. If a department receives a request directly from Number 10 they should let MST know immediately. Task assigned to: All Staff
15. Briefing required is usually in the form of a "Backbench Script", 4-5 bullets on the topic which can be read in 30 seconds. More detailed background briefing may be needed but instructions will be given on a case-by-case basis.Briefing must be cleared by at least head of Department level. It will also be cleared by the relevant PS for the Secretary of State. MST will submit briefing to No 10.Task assigned to: All Staff, Director, Head of Department, Head of Overseas Office
Bookmark with:
What are Bookmarks?