Chapter II
The House of Lords
The Upper House
- Composition of the House of Lords
- The former composition of the House of Lords (until 1999):
- Approximately 1000 people sitting in the House of Lords.
- It was characterised by a great conservatism and absenteeism.
- We distinguished between:
Lords Temporal (Between 1200 and 1300)
Lords Spiritual: 26
a. The Lords Temporal:
- 788 Hereditary Peers and Peeresses representing two thirds of the House.
- 360 Life Peers (created in 1958 by the Life Peerages Act). Often appointed Peers for service to the nation (ex: all the former prime ministers)
- 12 The Lords of Appeal in Ordinary (= Law Lords): appointed for life by the sovereign on the advice of the Lord Chancellor. (+ 12 former Law Lords can also sit at their side).
b. The Lords Spiritual:
- Archbishop of Canterbury and Archbishop of York
- The 24 oldest bishops of the Church of England (whose head is the Sovereign).
- Their presence in the Upper House is criticised as it gives political clout to the Church of England which is unrepresentative of the cultural and religious diversity of the UK.
Since the Peerage Act (1963), a Hereditary Lord willing to be more involved in the political life of his country may disclaim his title.
- The House of Lords since the House of Lords Act (1999)
This act (which came into force in January 2000) was a remedy to:
- the poor level of attendance in the House of Lords
- the overwhelming conservatism of the House
Further to the Act:
- Hereditary Peers lost the privilege/ right to sit automatically in the House. (Article 1 of the law reads “No one shall be a member of the House of Lords by virtue of a hereditary peerage”). Only 92 hereditary peers have the right to sit in the House
- The Constitutional Reform Act 2005
- The act suppressed the Lords of Appeal in Ordinary.
- The House of Lords is not the highest court of Appeal of the British Judicial System.
- Members of the Supreme Court are first former Law Lords. They have the title of “Justices of the Supreme Court” and are judges only. They can’t be members of the Upper House. The Supreme Court, (located in a separate building: in Middlesex Guildhall) started operating in October 2009.
- The Constitutional Reform Act 2005
The House of Lords used to be the Highest Court of the Land. But the fact that the House of Lords combined Legislative and Judicial functions, and that the Lord Chancellor used to be a member of the Cabinet, Speaker of the House of Lords, as well as the Head of the Judicial Branch, contravened the principle of separation of powers. The Constitutional Reform Act 2005, brought a remedy to (put an end to) this confusion of powers.
1. The Lord Chancellor
Before the Constitutional Reform Act:
- The Lord Chancellor was the Speaker of the House of Lords.
- He was at the head of the Upper House.
- Contrary to the Speaker in the House of Commons, he could take part in debates, and he could vote.
- He was a member of the Cabinet, as Secretary of Justice.
- He was appointed by the Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister.
Pursuant to the Constitutional Reform:
- The Lord Chancellor does not have a judicial role anymore. He is not president of the Chancery division of the High Court as he used to be. He does not preside the Appellate Committee of the House of Lords (“Chambre des Lords en formation judiciaire”), which has been replaced by the Supreme Court of Justice of the U.K.
- The Lord Chancellor is a member of the cabinet at the head of the Department of Justice. He is chosen among people having either, a certain experience as a secretary of state, or as an MP or as top-rank lawyer.
- The Lord Speaker of the House of Lords is a distinct position from the Lord Chancellor.
2. The Lord Speaker
- He is elected internally by Members of the House of Lords.
- He is politically impartial.
- The Lord Speaker assumed some of the responsibilities previously held by the Lord Chancellor, but, unlike the Lord Chancellor, is independent of government. He chairs the Lords debating chamber, offers advice on procedure, and acts as an ambassador for the work of the Lords both at home and abroad.
- Lord Speakers can sit for two terms only, which last a maximum of five years each.
- Although the Lord Speaker chairs the Lords debating chamber, they have less authority than their counterpart Speaker in the Commons. This is because the Lords regulate themselves and the order of business in the House. Therefore, unlike the Speaker in the House of Commons, the Lord Speaker does not call the House to order or rule on points of order call Members to speak or select amendments.
3. The Leader of the House of Lords
- The Leader of the House of Lords is a government minister and member of the Cabinet. The office is responsible for the organisation of government business in the House of Lords, and offering advice on matters of House procedure (the formal and informal rules of its everyday activities). He is appointed by the Prime Minister.
- (The Leader expresses the collective feelings of the House on formal occasions, such as motions of thanks or congratulations. The Leader is also available to assist and advise all Lords.)
4. A word about ‘Black Rod’
- Black Rod is a senior officer in the House of Lords.
- He is responsible for security, controlling access to and maintaining order within the House (police services and fire safety).
- He also has ceremonial duties. Appointed by the Lord Great Chamberlain and secretary to the Lord Great Chamberlain, Black Rod is responsible for and participates in the major ceremonial events in the Palace of Westminster.
- Black Rod's role at the State Opening of Parliament: He is sent from the Lords Chamber to House of Commons to summon MPs to hear the Queen's Speech. Traditionally the door of the Commons is slammed in Black Rod's face to symbolise the Commons independence. Black Rod then bangs three times on the door with the rod. The door of the House of Commons is then opened and all MPs follow Black Rod back to the Lords to hear the Queen's Speech.
- Functions of the House of Lords
- Judicial Functions
- The House of Lords Used to be the final appellate court of the UK.
- In 2005, the Constitutional Reform Act transferred the House of Lords’ judicial function to a Supreme Court of the UK.
- The Law Lords (Lords of Appeal in Ordinary), became Justices of the Supreme Court.
- Legislative Functions
- The role of the House of Lords in the law-making process was rather limited.
- In theory, an of the two chambers of Parliament could initiate a bill, except in the case of financial bills, which first have to be studies in the House of Commons.
- Bills may be initiated in the House of Lords but this procedure is rather rare, as most bills are proposed by the government. Most of the time, the legislative role of the House of Lords consists in studying bills which have been voted by the House of Commons (following a procedure similar to that of the House of Commons but quicker).
- The Parliament Acts of 1911 and 1949 greatly reduced the powers of the House of Lords. Since then the House of Lords merely had the power to delay the enactment of a bill.
- 1911: May delay a bill for 2 years (only 1 month for financial bills). The Act reduced the Life of the parliament from 7 to 5 years.
- 1949: May delay a bill for 1 year only, (only 1 month for financial bills). If the bill is rejected by the Lords and reintroduced y the commons at the next session, the Lord can’t veto the bill.
