There are over seven hundred peers who hold titles that may be inherited; only ninety-two are now permitted (surely a temporary measure) to sit in the House of Lords, although this reduction has been challenged in the — ahem — European Court of Human Rights.
Hat tip: Wilson Revolution Unplugged.
Possibly the worst act of the Labour administration in office since 1997 (amidst considerable competition).
ReplyDeleteOne can only carry on fighting the good fight for the restoration of the peers to their proper place, with rather more hope than expectation.
As regrettable as the House of Lords Act was its effect has been to increase both the credibility and activity of the House. Without the Act the Lords would have been in a weaker position when it has been called upon to challenge the government.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure if it wasn't for that we'd now be closer to an elected House than ever.
Thank goodness for the Lords.
"I'm sure if it wasn't for that we'd now be closer to an elected House than ever."
ReplyDeleteBut we are going to get an elected House of Lords now. Alastair Campbell has written in his diaries that he expected the Lords to negotiate for (and get) more than they did. A temporary lease of life for only 90 of the hereditaries was a poor bargain to strike, and we hover on the brink of an elected second chamber as long as it will only take a little push to remove the hereditaries. It may be possible to retain the life peers longer, but the object is to retain a hereditary house. A full House of life appointees is only a little better than an elected one.