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§ Mr. Bob Russell (Colchester)On a point of order, Mr. Deputy Speaker. On 6 July, along with other right hon. and hon. Members, I tabled an oral question to the Chancellor of the Exchequer. I had the good fortune to be drawn at No. 1. Last night, 11 days later, I was advised that the question had been vetoed by the Chancellor. I have made inquiries today and his office has confirmed that. The question was identical to one that I tabled two years ago, which was answered on the Floor of the House by the Paymaster General. May I please have some guidance on the Chancellor's right personally to veto an oral question 11 days after it was tabled?
§ Mr. Deputy Speaker (Sir Alan Haselhurst)I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for giving notice of his point of order. As "Erskine May" makes clear, it is a long-established principle that decisions on the transfer of questions rest with Ministers, not the Chair. However, the Speaker does expect Departments to act promptly in transferring questions. Successive Speakers have said that it is a discourtesy if transfers are not notified within two sitting days of the first appearance of the notice. In this case, the practice has been breached by a very wide margin. Decisions on which Minister should answer a particular question should be taken consistently, so that Members can have a reasonable expectation of what questions will be answered by which Department when they table oral questions.