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Title

Ch15 Questions / QUESTIONS IN WRITING / Notice of question

Database

House Practice

Date

01-05-2005

Source

House of Reps

Parl No.

41

Chapter

Questions

Chapter No.

Chapter 15

Page

549

Section No.

 

System Id

procedural/practcer/chapter15.40.doc


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Ch15 Questions / QUESTIONS IN WRITING / Notice of question



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House of Representatives                                Ch 15                                                 p 549

 

Questions / QUESTIONS IN WRITING

 

Notice of question

Members may ask questions in writing by having them placed on the Notice Paper. Neither the question nor the answer is read in the House. There is no rule limiting the number of questions a Member may place on the Notice Paper at any time or on the length of a question, although in very extraordinary circumstances practical considerations, such as printing arrangements, could impose a limit.

A Member lodging a question for the Notice Paper must deliver it in writing, to the Clerk at the Table or to the Table Office. The question must be authorised by the Member. Questions for the next Notice Paper must be lodged by the cut off time determined by the Speaker, otherwise they will be included in the Notice Paper for the following sitting. 1 The Speaker has determined that questions for the next day’s Notice Paper should, in normal circumstances, be lodged by 4 p.m. Authorisation generally implies a signature. However, this is not insisted on when the Member delivers the question in person. Questions forwarded by e-mail are accepted if the message comes from the Member’s official e-mail address or the Member’s office.

Until 2001 the standing orders required each notice of question to show the day proposed for asking the question. 2 However, it was the practice to ignore this requirement, which originated when questions on notice were asked for oral answer in the Chamber, as it was taken that the notice was for the next sitting unless the Member stated otherwise. However, from time to time a notice of question could still be given for a particular date 3 —for example, to permit a question to be placed on the Notice Paper about events expected to occur on a future date, thus alerting the Minister and facilitating an early reply.

Questions are not accepted from Members while they are suspended from the service of the House.



S.O. 102. For statistics see Appendix 21.



Former S.O. 148.



NP 64 (16.10.70) 4351.