Elected members of a reformed House of Lords would serve single terms of 15 years under plans to be announced by the Deputy Prime Minister.
Sixty peers would still be appointed to a slimmed-down chamber of 300 after Nick Clegg was forced to accept a compromise.
Instead of a fully elected chamber that was promised in the Liberal Democrat manifesto in the event that party took sole power, Nick Clegg will soon present plans for one that is 80 per cent elected and 20 per cent appointed. He has also bowed to pressure from the Church of England and reserved places for some Anglican Bishops, although many fewer than the 26 who sit on the red benches now.
Tony Blair’s mess will finally get sorted out, but at the expense of English constitutional history… What a shame.
Every time they start “reforming” the Lords, it comes out worse than when they started. I think the Lords should just vote to abolish the Commons and put an end to all of this silliness. Britain does not need two houses of Parliament.
I’m for retaining the hereditary peers. They’ve done a good job checking some of the excesses of various parliments.
“I think the Lords should just vote to abolish the Commons”
They have tried that once or twice before (or something similar)…!