Maverick MP Maurice Williamson was caught on camera visibly aghast at soft questions being asked by fellow National MP Melissa Lee.

There is a ritual in Parliament at Question Time where Government MPs – usually backbench, lowly ranked MPs – will be required to ask what are known as "patsy" questions.

"Patsies" can be described as soft questions to ministers, which allow them to talk up some positive news from their portfolio responsibilities.

These questions almost always draw howls of derision from the opposition benches, but you don't usually see that derision being openly expressed by the MP's party colleagues.

But National’s former minister Maurice Williamson appeared unwilling or unable to hide his disdain for a supplementary question from National's List MP, Melissa Lee.

Ms Lee was asking Tertiary Education Minister Steven Joyce about how the Government was helping students make more informed tertiary study and followed up with:

"How will the information help students make better decisions?"

Mr Williamson sits directly behind Ms Lee in Parliament's Debating Chamber and could be heard saying, "Oh, Jesus."

Ms Lee followed up with "What other initiatives are underway to improve information available for students?"