How parliaments hold ministers (particularly prime ministers) to account is a fundamental part of parliamentary democracy. And one of those mechanisms of accountability involves asking questions. 

We take a good hard look at how – and how effectively – parliaments question prime ministers.

We are joined by Dr Ruxandra Serban, Associate Lecturer in Democratic and Authoritarian Politics here in the UCL Department of Political Science. Her research focusess directly on parliamentary questioning processes.

Mentioned in this episode:

• Ruxandra Serban. Conflictual behaviour in legislatures: Exploring and explaining adversarial remarks in oral questions to prime ministers. The British Journal of Politics and International Relations.
• Ruxandra Serban. Is confrontational questioning bad for parliaments and democratic politics? The Constitution Unit Blog.

UCL’s Department of Political Science and School of Public Policy offers a uniquely stimulating environment for the study of all fields of politics, including international relations, political theory, human rights, public policy-making and administration. The Department is recognised for its world-class research and policy impact, ranking among the top departments in the UK on both the 2021 Research Excellence Framework and the latest Guardian rankings.