Labour’s manifesto calls for a consultation on creating a more representative body to replace the out-of-touch House of Lords. An immediate priority in Labour’s plan for government is to reduce the size of the Lords and make it easier to remove controversial peers. Participation requirements will also be introduced to ensure that all colleagues meet the high standards that the public expects of them. The size and role of the House of Lords has come under increased scrutiny in recent years, amid warnings that the membership, with 784 current members, has become too large.
Concerns have also been expressed about some of the colleagues nominated by former prime ministers, including Boris Johnson, particularly Lord Libido. The media mogul and son of a former KGP agent was given a life sentence in 2020 but spoke only once on the floor of the House. What is the House of Lords? The House of Lords is part of the Parliament of Great Britain. Also known as the Upper House, it is independent of the House of Commons where 650 Members of Parliament (MPs) debate and vote on new laws. Members of the Lords are called peers. Like members of parliament, they also scrutinize the work of the government and recommend changes to proposed legislation.
Peers can block bills from becoming law for more than a year, potentially upsetting the parliamentary machinery, and most new laws are passed by the House of Lords. Unlike MPs, peers are not elected. Most are appointed by the king on the advice of the prime minister, while many colleagues have worked in politics, including some former members of parliament. Others specialize in fields such as science or the arts. Most fellows live in Lords, although some choose to retire. In December 2022, Sir Kerr unveiled a report by former Prime Minister Gordon Brown, which included plans to abolish the House of Lords, among other constitutional reforms. The report was billed as a possible blueprint for a first-term Labor government. Since then there have been several attempts to scrap the plans.
Labor has promised to modernize the Upper House immediately. In its manifesto, Labor said it recognized the good work of many colleagues who scrutinize the government and improve the quality of legislation passed in parliament, reforms that are long overdue and necessary. The document further states that since the appointments are for life, the second house of the Parliament has become very large. The BBC understands that the ban will come into effect at the end of Parliament, when peers turn 80, with some allowed to stay until the age of 85. There is no age limit for serving as a Member of Parliament. A mandatory retirement age of 80 will affect Labor’s groupings in the Lords the most because their peers are on average older than Tory or Independent peers.
Labor colleagues are even less so than the Conservatives. This could mean that a Labor government will have to appoint dozens of new peers to be confident of passing new laws through the upper house. Under Labour’s plan, several influential colleagues will be kicked out of the chamber. They include Labour’s Lord Dubs, who served as MP for Battersea after arriving in Britain aged six after fleeing the Nazis, Conservative former deputy prime minister Lord Heseltine and former Lib Dem leader Lord Campbell. involved in.
The last Labor government got rid of most hereditary peers in 1999 but allowed 92 to remain in a contract. Their numbers are maintained through by-elections to replace retiring or deceased members and are elected from among the 800 fellows, who inherit their titles. There have been several attempts to abolish this system over the years, but it remains in place. Labor has now promised to introduce legislation to end the right of hereditary peers to sit and vote in the House of Lords.
