What is PMQs?
The nutshell
PMQs stands for Prime Minister's Questions. Every Wednesday that Parliament meets, MPs ask the Prime Minister questions in the House of Commons.
Every fact on this page comes from UK Parliament and non-partisan explainers. Each source tag — like Parl — opens where a fact comes from.
The basics
What PMQs is
PMQs is short for Prime Minister's Questions. It is a set session where MPs ask the Prime Minister questions in the House of Commons. The Institute for Government calls it the main chance most MPs have to question the Prime Minister directly.IfG
When it happens
PMQs takes place at noon on every Wednesday that the Commons is sitting.Parl It is scheduled to last about half an hour, though the Speaker can let it run on.IfG
How it works
A session usually starts with an MP asking about the Prime Minister'sengagements — the meetings planned for that day.Parl After that first answer, the Leader of the Opposition — the head of the largest party not in government — can put up to six questions in a row. The leader of the next-largest opposition party can ask two.Parl
Why it is talked about
PMQs is one of the best-known moments of the parliamentary week. The Hansard Society describes it as one of the loudest and most theatrical half-hours in British politics, loved and loathed in equal measure.HS No laws are passed at PMQs. It is a time to ask and answer questions, not to vote.
- The Institute for Government calls PMQs the main regular chance most MPs have to question the Prime Minister directly
- PMQs runs on every Wednesday the Commons is sitting, so the Prime Minister answers questions in public most weeks Parliament meets
- UK Parliament says the Leader of the Opposition can put up to six questions to the Prime Minister in a row
- The Hansard Society describes PMQs as one of the loudest and most theatrical half-hours in British politics, loved and loathed in equal measure
- No laws are passed and no votes are held at PMQs — it is a question-and-answer session only
- The Hansard Society's research has found that many people feel PMQs has too much party-political point-scoring instead of answers
The deep end6 min
Where PMQs came from
Questions to the Prime Minister are old. Set times for those questions are more recent. The House of Commons Library records that fixed slots began in 1961. From 1961 until 1997 the Prime Minister answered questions in two 15-minute sessions, on Tuesdays and Thursdays.HoC
In 1997 the Blair government merged the two sessions into a single half-hour session once a week, according to the Institute for Government.IfGThat weekly Wednesday session is the format still used today.
How a session runs
MPs who want to ask a question enter a ballot, and a set number are picked at random for each Wednesday, as the Institute for Government explains.IfGBy custom, the first MP asks the Prime Minister to list the engagements for the day. This lets the MP follow up on almost any subject, while keeping the real question secret until the last moment.IfG
UK Parliament sets out who speaks and in what order. The Leader of the Opposition may ask up to six questions, and the leader of the next-largest opposition party may ask two.Parl Most other MPs get a single question each.
What people argue about PMQs
PMQs is one of the most watched events of the parliamentary week, and views on it differ. The Hansard Society describes it as loved and loathed in equal measure — treated by some as democratic accountability and by others as a raucous set-piece.HS
The Prime Minister must answer questions in public, in person, on most sitting weeks.IfG The Hansard Society's research has also found a common complaint that party-political point-scoring can get in the way of clear answers.HSPMQs is only one part of how Parliament checks the government. Select committees and written questions handle much of that scrutiny away from the cameras.