Lord Ashdown
104 speakers listed and a generous time allocation of 9 minutes, I had been looking forward to the first day of the two day debate on the White Paper on House of Lords Reform. There were no new arguments but some of the old ones were elegantly put and some were wonderfully passionate. Read it at http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld201011/ldhansrd/text/110621-0001.htm#11062140000433. Lord Ashdown could hardly contain his enthusiasm for an elected house and I agreed with every word then Lady Boothroyd made a ‘bloodcurdling’ opposing speech (Lord Ashdown’s description) of such magnificence that I almost agreed with her too. Lord Wakeham was his usual measured and sensible self advocating a compromise and on we went. It all boils down to whether one accepts that the House is part of the legislature and therefore should be democratically elected in a modern democratic state or whether its powers are so minimal in restraining the executive that it doesn’t really matter if we are appointed by patronage of various kinds. I decided not to participate in this debate because in reality I’ve nothing new to add except to support Ashdown and reject Boothroyd but to pray that the Wakeham approach is adopted. I shall be amazed if this White Paper comes to anything. There’s a far more important debate on the Working Practices of the House next Monday, much more likely to bring about effective change and improve the House’s performance as a revising chamber so I’m saving my pearls of wisdom for then. Also next Monday the Chairman of Committees will tell us what response he is proposing to our recommendations on peers’ retirement. Getting the numbers down to 300 would be a great step forward. Still I’ll be listening again later today just in case something new emerges.
Small changes having a bigger effect than grand plans?!
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The knock on effects of the Greek debt crisis may yet be more significant, than any such local quibbling, remembering that Greece is a Balkan country, whilst Globalism is pressing for clearer definitions,firstly of the “Arab Country”, and secondly the unity of
the EU (European Union).
I have been quite startled today to hear of a proposed division of European currency boundaries between North and Southern Europe,
between strong currencies and weak ones.
That is the way the next European boundary shake up will go/happen, but I certainly would not have expected any such suggestion for a good many years yet.
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I have nothing to add but to reject Ashdown and support the commons sense Boothroyd!
Come on! Did somebody help you slot the text so neatly between beauty and the beast?
This title is about Reform of the House of Lords
which we take it means ‘as much improvement as possible’.
So whether those improvements be named as “democratic” or otherwise,
they still will not produce sufficient improvement, even for present 5-year-term needs, let alone for the longterm future, whilst significantly great and lifesupports-conserving advances in both knowledge and practical-know-how go on being denied and kept outside of the Members’ of Parliaments skill in to bring into use and making affordably accessible to all.
Try “Method III”, genericly;
and for the ageing members of both Houses have a quick read through the Introduction ‘The Myth of Aging’, in Thomas Hanna’s “Somatics -reawakening the mind’s control of movement, flexibility, and health” –
do this if not for your-self then for the many thousands of us equally elderly, and the many millions of younger-but-still-self-improvable, who are prepared to do it but are being prevented by obsolescent ‘laws of life’, of ‘sustain-worthiness’, and of ‘marketplace economics’.
Then we all, from your tops in the Commons and the Lords, to our bottoms in underclasses, permanently-low-income classes, and the impaired & the ageing, will begin to stand a chance not only of being central-constitutionally-reformed, but of proactively reforming our individual and local-mutual-life-improvement-associations’ selves.
http://www.agelessgrace.com
1657W22Jun11.JSDM.
Noble Baroness Murphy
It will be difficult if not unsettling, for those newly found Lords to be ejected so soon after having realized their goal of membership, if it is reduced to 300.
I am all in favour of it, in the short term, but I shall be very interested to hear the outcome of the committee deliberations next week.
I have got one acquaintance round here who realized what he had to do to “join the club”
and he has accumulated a number of good friends (mainly in the CofE) on account of it. If he is just as promptly evicted, neither he nor his supporters are going to be happy about it.
That might apply to a couple of hundred newly sworn-in members.
World events may catch up with all of this.
Perhaps they will be satisfied with 5 years membership, and an honour of “Lord” for the rest of their lives, as discussed here.
No Senex, I did it all myself now I have mastered where to click. Now here’s a question…who is that chap peering from behind our BB? Clue…a romantic Shakespearean surname but an edible title…and he’s got a question down for tomorrow on benzodiazepine misuse.
You’re in trouble – John, 11th Earl of Sandwich
Why is he half way down his sandwich when his son hasn’t even started?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/8453456/Earl-of-Sandwich-opens-sandwich-shop.html
Perhaps he ate with relish?
A: The Earl of Sandwich
I’ve never had a fancy for sandwiches.