Part of Portfolio Question Time – in the Scottish Parliament at on 8 October 2025.
Angus Robertson
Scottish National Party
First, I take the opportunity to publicly welcome Mr Jones to his role as Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, following the UK Government’s latest reshuffle.
It is crucial that UK Government ministers engage meaningfully with devolved Governments and parliamentarians, especially in relation to the budget, given the impact that spending decisions at Westminster have on Scotland. Given that he now has responsibility for intergovernmental relations, I urge Mr Jones to pursue a good level of engagement with me and my ministerial colleagues, as well as with the Parliament and parliamentarians.
More broadly, the Scottish Government welcomed the UK Government’s commitment to reset its relationships with the devolved nations; however, we have become increasingly concerned about the extent to which that relationship has truly been reset. Several high-profile problems in intergovernmental working have occurred over the first year of the UK Government’s term. I hope that Mr Jones takes note of that and works to forge better collaboration, to ultimately benefit the people of Scotland.
Question Time is an opportunity for MPs and Members of the House of Lords to ask Government Ministers questions. These questions are asked in the Chamber itself and are known as Oral Questions. Members may also put down Written Questions. In the House of Commons, Question Time takes place for an hour on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays after Prayers. The different Government Departments answer questions according to a rota and the questions asked must relate to the responsibilities of the Government Department concerned. In the House of Lords up to four questions may be asked of the Government at the beginning of each day's business. They are known as 'starred questions' because they are marked with a star on the Order Paper. Questions may also be asked at the end of each day's business and these may include a short debate. They are known as 'unstarred questions' and are less frequent. Questions in both Houses must be written down in advance and put on the agenda and both Houses have methods for selecting the questions that will be asked. Further information can be obtained from factsheet P1 at the UK Parliament site.
The Chancellor - also known as "Chancellor of the Exchequer" is responsible as a Minister for the treasury, and for the country's economy. For Example, the Chancellor set taxes and tax rates. The Chancellor is the only MP allowed to drink Alcohol in the House of Commons; s/he is permitted an alcoholic drink while delivering the budget.
