Parliamentary Questions

Abstract

Parliamentary Questions is a selection of written questions from MPs to government ministers in the House of Commons. The answers from ministers highlighted in this section focus on social security, tax credits and poverty matters that may be of general interest to readers. Published in daily and weekly editions of Hansard, questions and answers across a range of issues can also now be found online at www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm/hansrd.htm In addition to written parliamentary questions, Hansard also covers oral answers from the ministers in the Department for Work and Pensions and other departments on a regular basis. Recently ministers also started making written ministerial statements. These are printed just before the written answers in Hansard, and often cover announcements of substantive policy changes, the publication of reports etc. Because of the availability of parliamentary answers on the website, only a few significant answers are now reproduced in full in Benefits. Other important answers are listed below, in chronological order, within each topic. (Please note that this is not a complete list of parliamentary answers on social security benefits etc., but only those which the contributor thinks fairly important and/or interesting within the limits of space.) The answers below cover the period from early June to late October 2004. Some questions may have been addressed to the Treasury rather than to the Department for Work and Pensions.