Found: Marshal and Lord Great Chamberlain to exercise their ceremonial functions should the House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill

Found: Marshal and Lord Great Chamberlain to exercise their ceremonial function should the House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will publish a timeline for subsequent House of Lords reform after the House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill has concluded.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

Alongside the passage of the House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill, the government has been engaged in a dialogue with the House on how we can best implement the Government’s other manifesto commitments. I look forward to continuing that dialogue and considering how to approach it in a more structured way.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number and percentage of hereditary Peers in the House of Lords with experience of running and growing a business, and how this compares with the rest of the House; what assessment they have made of the impact of the removal of hereditary Peers from the House of Lords on its scrutiny of legislation and its role in holding the Government to account; and what steps they are taking to ensure that relevant business experience is maintained in the House.

Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Government recognises and values the contributions hereditary peers have made to the House of Lords.

The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill delivers the Government’s manifesto commitment to remove the right of hereditary peers to sit and vote in the House of Lords, completing the work of the House of Lords Act 1999. In the 21st century there should not be places reserved in the legislature for people born into certain families.

The Government is supportive of the inclusion of individuals from all backgrounds in the House of Lords and believes the second chamber is enriched by members who bring diverse experience and expertise. This includes members with business experience.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government which current members of the House of Lords will be affected by the House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill as currently drafted.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Basildon - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal

The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill delivers the manifesto commitment to remove the right of hereditary peers to sit and vote in the House of Lords. As a result of the Bill, the 92 seats currently reserved for hereditary peers will be removed. The Bill will remove the remaining hereditary peers at the end of the Parliamentary session in which it receives Royal Assent. A list of the current hereditary peers can be found below

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to expand the grounds under which a peerage can be revoked to include crimes involving (a) sexual offences and (b) abuse of power.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

Currently, a member of the House of Lords automatically ceases to be a member if they are convicted of a criminal offence and given a custodial sentence of more than one year. Additionally, the House may expel members who have breached the Code of Conduct by approving such a sanction as may be recommended by the House of Lords Conduct Committee.

Revoking peerages requires bespoke primary legislation. The Government is focused on delivering its manifesto commitments on House of Lords reform, including strengthening the circumstances in which disgraced members can be removed from the House.

The manifesto was clear that, as an immediate reform, it would introduce legislation to remove the right of hereditary peers to sit and vote in the House of Lords. The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill has now completed its passage through the House of Commons and will soon enter Committee stage in the House of Lords.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to reform the process for the forfeiture of peerages where a peer has been convicted of serious crimes.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

Currently, a member of the House of Lords automatically ceases to be a member if they are convicted of a criminal offence and given a custodial sentence of more than one year. Additionally, the House may expel members who have breached the Code of Conduct by approving such a sanction as may be recommended by the House of Lords Conduct Committee.

Revoking peerages requires bespoke primary legislation. The Government is focused on delivering its manifesto commitments on House of Lords reform, including strengthening the circumstances in which disgraced members can be removed from the House.

The manifesto was clear that, as an immediate reform, it would introduce legislation to remove the right of hereditary peers to sit and vote in the House of Lords. The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill has now completed its passage through the House of Commons and will soon enter Committee stage in the House of Lords.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department has made an assessment of the adequacy of legislation for revoking peerages in cases involving serious criminal convictions.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

Currently, a member of the House of Lords automatically ceases to be a member if they are convicted of a criminal offence and given a custodial sentence of more than one year. Additionally, the House may expel members who have breached the Code of Conduct by approving such a sanction as may be recommended by the House of Lords Conduct Committee.

Revoking peerages requires bespoke primary legislation. The Government is focused on delivering its manifesto commitments on House of Lords reform, including strengthening the circumstances in which disgraced members can be removed from the House.

The manifesto was clear that, as an immediate reform, it would introduce legislation to remove the right of hereditary peers to sit and vote in the House of Lords. The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill has now completed its passage through the House of Commons and will soon enter Committee stage in the House of Lords.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the constitutional implications of the reforms in the House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill for (1) the continued validity of the Salisbury-Addison Convention, and (2) the conventions of the House of Lords in not rejecting secondary legislation.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Basildon - Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal

The conventions of the House are unaffected by the House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill. The Bill fulfills a manifesto commitment to remove the right of hereditary peers to sit and vote in the House of Lords. As such, the Bill clearly engages the Salisbury-Addison convention.

Found: House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill 2024-25: Progress of the bill