Lower House holds extra question time over unanswered questions
Lower House Speaker Thom van Campen wants ministers challenged over missed deadlines for written parliamentary questions.
The Lower House will hold an extra question time on Wednesday about the backlog of written questions to which ministers have yet to respond. According to Lower House Speaker Thom van Campen, 66 sets of questions were unanswered more than a week ago.
Van Campen has informed MPs that questions still unanswered at 10.00 on Tuesday can be submitted for the extra question time. The aim is to persuade ministers henceforth to exceed response deadlines only in exceptional and explainable cases.
Written parliamentary questions are an important instrument of scrutiny. MPs use them to ask for explanations about current events, policy and implementation. The questions can be extensive and sometimes contain dozens of sub-questions, but under the Rules of Procedure the government must respond within the agreed deadlines.
The Lower House states on its website that the usual deadline is three weeks. If a minister has announced a delay, the House says a limit of six weeks after submission applies. The public list includes questions more than three weeks old without a delay notice, or more than six weeks old following a delay notice.
The extra question time is not a new statutory deadline and will not automatically produce an answer to every individual question. It is primarily a political incentive: ministers will be asked in the chamber to account for delays. MPs can also ask what measures are needed to clear the backlog.
A similar intervention reportedly took place in spring 2025, when the then Lower House Speaker summoned ministers to the House over missed deadlines. Normally, one hour is available on Tuesday afternoon for oral questions to ministers about current affairs.
The issue is therefore not only about administration. When answers arrive late, MPs are less able to check quickly whether policy is being implemented as promised. At the same time, pressure for speed may result in less complete answers. The political question on Wednesday is how much weight the House gives to timeliness and how much to substantive quality.
One story, several perspectives
What is established
- The Lower House publishes a list of questions that have exceeded the response deadline.
- The Lower House Speaker has announced an extra question time.
- The number of unanswered sets is a snapshot and may change before Wednesday.
Left
Arguments Late answers weaken scrutiny of the government, especially when questions concern implementation problems or vulnerable groups. Ministers must accept political responsibility for delays.
Values Democratic scrutiny, transparency and the protection of citizens.
Consequences More pressure may reduce backlogs, but it also requires sufficient civil-service capacity to keep answers substantively sound.
Centre
Arguments The House should enforce deadlines, but distinguish between avoidable delays and complex cases. A fixed public overview and better planning may achieve more than a public reprimand alone.
Values Institutional reliability, feasibility and quality.
Consequences A procedural approach can preserve the balance between rapid information and careful responses.
Right
Arguments Ministers and departments must simply deliver what the House asks for. Anyone who systematically misses deadlines undermines administrative discipline and should be held politically accountable.
Values Responsibility, efficiency and the authority of the elected chamber.
Consequences Strict enforcement may make government more decisive, but can also lead to superficial answers if speed becomes the only measure.
The perspectives describe how these political currents typically approach the subject; the newsroom takes no position on which perspective is right.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The procedural core was checked directly with the Lower House and supplemented with ANP reporting about the announcement. The article makes clear that the number of unanswered sets is a snapshot.
- confirmed An extra question time about unanswered written questions will be held on Wednesday. — Reported by ANP via Welingelichte Kringen. source
- confirmed More than a week earlier, 66 sets of parliamentary questions were unanswered. — Mentioned in the same ANP report. source
- confirmed The usual response deadline is three weeks, and six weeks applies after a delay. — Stated on the official Lower House page. source
- confirmed A similar intervention took place in spring 2025. — Mentioned in the ANP reporting. source
Editor's note
The announcement of the extra question time and the figure of 66 sets come from ANP reporting. The formal deadlines and public list were checked with the Lower House.Sources
- Extra vragenuur in Tweede Kamer om stapel onbeantwoorde vragen — ANP via Welingelichte Kringen
- Schriftelijke Kamervragen die niet op tijd beantwoord zijn — Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal
More on this in Dutch media
- de Volkskrant — „tweede kamer”
- RTL Nieuws — „tweede kamer”
- NOS — „tweede kamer”