THE presence of bishops in the House of Lords was debated on Tuesday; the Archbishop of York called for wider faith representation.
The new Attorney-General, Lord Hermer, opened the debate. He spoke about his childhood in Wales and lifelong support for the Labour Party, and contrasted with his father’s position as a Conservative councillor.
“Our political discussions around the family table were conducted always with respect and often with humour. What is more, as I matured, I developed an inkling that, if I talked a little less and listened a little more, I might actually learn something,” he said.
At his swearing-in ceremony, the terms of the oath had, for the first time, included a commitment to upholding the rule of law. This small step was “symbolic”, he said, of the Government’s commitment to the rule of law.
The Government’s plans to remove the 92 elected hereditary peers from the House of Lords, should not be taken as an insult to the work such peers had done, Lord Hermer said; instead, they should be seen as “a reflection of our commitment to maintaining the vitality of our democratic institutions”.
Further reforms, he revealed, would include a mandatory retirement age of 80. As of 2020, about 150 peers were over this age.
Lord Hermer also referred to a “longer-term commitment” to replacing the House of Lords with a second chamber that is “more representative of the regions and nations”, and promised a public consultation on the proposals.
In a response to Lord Helmer, the Conservative life peer Lord Keen suggested that the “most immediate constitutional issue” was “the imbalance of power between Parliament and a mighty Executive”, and not the make-up of the House of Lords.
He asked why hereditary peers were the focus rather than the 26 Lords Spiritual, a situation that, he said, “appears more anomalous and perhaps more in need of reform”.
When Archbishop Cottrell spoke, he did not dwell on questions about the part played by the bishops, but did say that the Lords Spiritual “think that other faith communities could be better represented as well”.
He focused on “rebuilding trust in democracy”, referring to “alarming statistics” about participation in the General Election: that turnout was lower in constituencies with the lowest proportion of home ownership, and that an estimated 400,000 people were turned away at polling stations because they did not have voter ID.
He welcomed plans for further devolution, which, he said, “shifts perspective”, and also Lord Helmer’s characterisation of governance as service, which, he said, was important for building trust.
Archbishop Cottrell also signalled his support for the Labour Party’s manifesto pledge to reduce the voting age to 16. The King’s Speech made reference to measures to “encourage wide participation in the democratic process”, but Lord Helmer made no explicit mention of the policy in his speech.
Lord Wallace of Saltaire, a Liberal Democrat peer, referred to the lack of specifics, and called for such a policy to be brought forward, along with automatic voter registration.
Lord Wallace also criticised Lord Keen, suggesting that his party’s concern about the power of the executive branch had not been expressed when they were actually in government.
The real imbalance, he suggested, was between Conservative peers and those of other parties. Out of 790 current members, 273 are aligned with the Conservative Party.
One of the remaining hereditary peers, the Earl of Kinnoull, who sits as a cross-bencher, said that of “three unfairnesses” in the make-up of the Lords, the “unlimited and unfettered power” that the Prime Minister has to make appointments was more of a concern than the presence of bishops and hereditary peers.