Committee (House of Commons)

Political and Constitutional Reform Select Committee Announcement

21 January 2013

For Immediate Release:

Committee announces new inquiry – House of Lords reform: what next?

The Political and Constitutional Reform Committee has decided to conduct an inquiry into what smaller-scale changes to the membership and structure of the House of Lords would be likely to command a consensus.    The Committee is issuing a call for written evidence that addresses some or all of the following points:

·                         The desirability, practicality and effectiveness of mechanisms for reducing the size of the House of Lords, including the following:

Ø  no longer replacing hereditary peers in the House of Lords when they die;

Ø  measures to remove persistent non-attendees;

Ø  a moratorium on new peers;

Ø  fixed-term appointments for new peers; 

Ø  a retirement age for peers.

·         The effectiveness of the current voluntary retirement scheme for peers introduced following the recommendations of the Leader’s Group on Members Leaving the House.

·         The desirability and scope of a mechanism to expel peers who have been convicted of a serious offence. 

·         The desirability, composition and remit of a Statutory Appointments Commission.

·         The scope for establishing a consensus about the principles which should determine the relative numerical strengths of the different party groups in the House of Lords, and for codifying such principles.

How to respond:

The deadline for written submissions is Tuesday 26 March 2013.  Submissions should not significantly exceed 3,000 words unless this has been cleared in advance with the Committee secretariat.  Written responses to the Committee will usually be treated as evidence to the Committee and may be published. If you object to your response being made public in a volume of evidence, please make this clear when it is submitted.

Responses should be submitted by email in Microsoft Word or rich text format to pcrc@parliament.uk

If you do not have access to email, you may send a paper copy of your response to the Clerk of the Political and Constitutional Reform Committee, Committee Office, First Floor, 7 Millbank, London SW1P 3JA.

FURTHER INFORMATION:

Committee Membership is as follows:  Mr Graham Allen (Chair) (Nottingham North), Mr Christopher Chope (Christchurch), Paul Flynn (Newport West), Sheila Gilmore (Edinburgh East), Mr Andrew Griffiths (Burton), Mr Fabian Hamilton (Leeds North East), Simon Hart (Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire), Tristram Hunt (Stoke-on-Trent Central), Mrs Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest), Mr Andrew Turner (Isle of Wight) and Stephen Williams (Bristol West).

Specific Committee Information:  pcrc@parliament.uk 020 7219 6287

Media Information: Jessica Bridges-Palmer bridgespalmerj@parliament.uk 07917 488 447

Committee Website: www.parliament.uk/pcrc

Watch committees and parliamentary debates online:  www.parliamentlive.tv 

Publications / Reports / Reference Material: Copies of all select committee reports are available from the Parliamentary Bookshop (12 Bridge St, Westminster, 020 7219 3890) or the Stationery Office (0845 7023474).  Committee reports, press releases, evidence transcripts, Bills; research papers, a directory of MPs, plus Hansard (from 8am daily) and much more, can be found on www.parliament.uk

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House of Lords Reform: Where next

3/2/12

I am minded that tomorrow in the CofE diocesan cathedral of my birth Justin Welby (rt Rev Bishop of Durham) is to be legally inducted as Archbishop of Canterbury.

Much is made of the House of Lords having bishops of the C of E ex officio as the 26 ‘double jury’ on the basis of seniority in the post (longest term served) as the basis of the original 1215 Magna Carta reform that sought to change from Saxon gradated aristocratic witans into the House of Lords and Commons of the modern age, with an one intermediary tri chamber parliament of the house of bishops. This is the modern day inspiration for the tri chamber General Synod of the two ‘home provinces’ of the Church of England.

However in state there are two chambers of Parliament. The idea behind that is that so long as people raise the next generation well and ideally as part of the Church of England or one of its recognised denominations or faiths that advise the crown, the common ideals of tolerance are maintained. Hence the idea of the Heir to the Throne to defend faiths and none as well as being the FD title of Henry VIII.

These are only allegorical as the Tudor reforms put due process and the removal of harsh punishments from the united English and Welsh legal systems, now operating into similarly compassionate separate jurisdictions, similar to other Commonwealth jurisdictions.

Now, since 1829 for previous and current abilities and achievements, faith leaders of other churches and faiths sit in the chamber and can offer advice, especially with the end of the death penalty and compassion with legal support. This is based on the ideals of faith tolerance started in the Parliamentary Republic of Oliver Cromwell.

This is regarded as Ken Clarke’s compassionate time as Home Secretary through to tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime.

As such the United Kingdom has faith within its ‘senate’ and the question should be, should this continue or not? I would argue that as under the laws of state, non faith organisations exist such as Richard Dawkins and the National Secularist association,  have patrons from the Royal Family. As such all should within the ex officio component, similar to the hereditaries under a Government of Britain Bill with a codified constitution passed similar to the European Human Rights Act 1999, as amended and with a right of secession for the territories of Scotland, Wales and the six counties of Northern Ireland by develoution enabling leglislation, subsequent developments and Westminster devolved standing orders.

This should be approved by referendum after a constitutional convention as part of resolving the following issues:
Turning to the hereditaries, in the realism agenda they should be kept in the interim. IN an Age of austerity it is better that they keep their peerages linked to the crown and in an age of austerity this aids those with ability to make wealth to do so lawfully.

This requires proper parliamentary guidelines and company law to include the tax havens and financial instruments such as LIBOR regulated up to Treasury standards for the inflation target. This should be codified into the laws of the Commonwealth and IMF / World Bank to ensure that all play fair and can be held to account to deal with the threats of piracy and smuggling.

James A. Ware