I have just come from a conference on ‘European Disunion: The Multidimensional Power Struggles’, so I thought that the topic of the European Union would be a good base for this week’s quiz. As usual, the first two readers to supply the correct answers will be the winners. 1. Name at least four members of the…
I continue to hear people speculating as to whether or not there will be an early election. However, much of this appears to be based on the assumption that the Prime Minister can simply decide to ask the Queen to dissolve Parliament and call an election. What this overlooks is that two weeks ago, on…
The recent spat over whether a Bill should be taken in Grand Committee or on the floor of the House rather masks the more important limitation of committee scrutiny. Whether a Bill is taken for committee stage in Grand Committee or on the floor is not a major issue. Grand Committee is not a committee in…
The Life Peerages Act 1958 saw women enter the House as members. The Peerages Act 1963 enabled women who inherited their titles to sit. The number of women peers has grown over the decades. The Independent Appointments Commission has been especially active in ensuring that those it nominates for life peerages reflect the diversity of…
One of the comments in response to Baroness Murphy’s post touches upon the extent to which people are now encouraged to lobby members of the House of Lords. In this, there is nothing new. One survey conducted in 1986 of charities, consumer groups, unions and other organised interests found that 70% had approached peers for the…
