Written question asked by Simon Burns (Conservative) on Tuesday, 23 October 2001, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 29 October 2001. It was answered by Robin Cook (Labour) on Monday, 29 October 2001 on behalf of the Leader of the House of Commons.

President of the Council;Leader of the House of Commons

Question: To ask the President of the Council, what proposals he has for making the dates of Parliamentary sessions more family friendly.

Answer: Mr. Burns: To ask the President of the Council what proposals he has for making the dates of parliamentary Sessions more family friendly. [10484] Mr. Robin Cook: Like Leaders of the House before me, I recognise the practical arguments for more closely aligning adjournments with school holidays. There are obvious difficulties in that half term holidays vary accordingly to region and the Scottish school summer holidays differ markedly from those in England and Wales. However, I hope we can make progress on this issue through the Modernisation Committee. I also hope that we will announce the dates of parliamentary recesses further in advance than has been usual in the past. The dates of the Christmas recess were announced during the first business statement in October. I hope to continue and extend this practice so as to allow MPs to plan their constituency work and family engagements more effectively.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 10484; 373 c488W
Session: 2001-02
Subjects: Conditions of employment Families Legislatures Members Working hours
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk