Oral Answers to Questions

Alan Reid Excerpts

Tuesday 24th May 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Ben Bradshaw (Exeter) (Lab)]

5. What recent representations he has received on his proposals for reform of the House of Lords.

[Mr Alan Reid (Argyll and Bute) (LD)]

11. What representations he has received on his plans for the future composition of the House of Lords.

[Mel Stride (Central Devon) (Con)]

12. What recent representations he has received on his proposals for reform of the House of Lords.

--- Later in debate ---

[The Deputy Prime Minister]

The Prime Minister gave an unambiguous answer to the question about the Parliament Act at Prime Minister’s questions last week. Not only was the commitment made by all three parties in their manifestos, but it is one that we entered unambiguously into the coalition agreement.

[Mr Reid]

Does my right hon. Friend agree that it is important that the reforms lead to an increase in the diversity of representation in the second Chamber? What steps will he take to ensure that that is the outcome of the reform?

[The Deputy Prime Minister]

One of the advantages of the system that we are introducing, as explained in the White Paper, is that it will permit political parties to take active steps, in so far as they wish to do so, to use elections to the other place to increase the diversity of representation in Westminster as a whole.