Claims that investigations into the backgrounds of MPs before parliamentary questions are answered represents a politicisation of Whitehall have been dismissed by top civil servants.

Responding to a story in the Independent, Liberal Democrat chief whip Andrew Stunell said: "By holding personal information on MPs and peers in a government library for the use of parliamentary questions, the government is completely undermining the purpose of its own rules."

Forum Response: FDA

Jonathan Baume, general secretary of the FDA, told ePolitix.com: "Civil servants have a duty to answer parliamentary questions in a helpful and factual way. Understanding who an MP is and the rationale behind a particular question helps civil servants prepare an answer on behalf of their minister that satisfies as much as possible the concerns of that particular MP.

"Guidance for civil servants is particularly important given the volume of parliamentary questions handled by departments such as Work and Pensions, and the resulting pressure on the civil service. Critics who see the guidance as politicising the service seem to have grasped the wrong end of the stick.

"However, the phrase 'is it friendly?' is open to misinterpretation and clearer guidance would be more appropriate.Civil servants are politically impartial, but they are there to assist the elected government of the day and therefore must be sensitive to the concerns of both ministers and MPs."