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Committee publication · Correspondence · 16 July 2026

Letter from the Leader of the House of Commons, following up on the evidence session on 24 June, dated 9 July

From: Procedure Committee

Inquiry: Written Parliamentary Questions

Summary

The Leader of the House of Commons provides follow-up information to the Procedure Committee on Written Parliamentary Questions (WPQs), as requested after an evidence session on 24 June. The letter updates estimated costs: the average cost per WPQ is estimated at £230 in 2026 (up from £164 in 2012), translating to approximately £18.5 million annually for government in 2025 and £9.8 million for 2026 to date. The government commits to conducting a comprehensive modern cost exercise.

Key findings

  • Average cost of answering a WPQ estimated at £230 in 2026, up from £164 in 2012, based on wage and price inflation adjustments
  • Estimated annual government cost of WPQs: £18.5 million in 2025; £9.8 million for 2026 to 7 July
  • Previous formal cost estimate dates from 2012 and was itself based on a 1991 cost exercise, indicating long gap since comprehensive review
  • Government commits to conducting a more thorough and comprehensive exercise to establish the full modern average cost of answering WPQs
  • Figures provided do not include Parliament's own costs as part of the overall WPQ process

Tone

Procedural

Topics

parliamentary-procedurewritten-questionspublic-financegovernment-administration

Key actors

Sir Alan Campbell MP, Cat Smith MP, Procedure Committee, House of Commons, Government

Notable line

“… the Government will be conducting a more thorough, comprehensive exercise to establish the full modern average cost of answering a WPQ …”

Key Quotes

“The last time a government formally published the average cost of answering a WPQ was in 2012, when it was calculated at £164.”
— Sir Alan Campbell MP · on historical cost data
“Reflecting public sector wage and price changes over the intervening years, we estimate the current 2026 equivalent cost to be £230”
— Sir Alan Campbell MP · on updated WPQ costs
“… the Government will be conducting a more thorough, comprehensive exercise to establish the full modern average cost of answering a WPQ”
— Sir Alan Campbell MP · on planned government review of WPQ costing methodology
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Source · parliament.uk record ↗