Most of the time of the Lords is given over to legislative scrutiny. Spare a thought, therefore, for those peers who sit on the Opposition front benches. They have to spend hours in the chamber when a Bill falling within their portfolio is going through the House. It can mean long hours not just on one…
To mark the fiftieth anniversary of the passage of the Life Peerages Act, and the competition to find the most outstanding peer of the past fifty years, The Yorkshire Post last month carried an article of mine on the attributes that are required to make an effective member of the House of Lords. For anyone who would like to…
The Palace of Westminster is a historic building. It is a magnificent and awe-inspiring edifice. Its age, though, can have its problems, not least in terms of maintenance. This appeared this week on the parliamentary intranet: Flooding in Peers’ Lobby 29 Jul 2008 Following Monday’s flooding in the Peers’ Lobby, tours have now resumed using…
Lord Tyler’s post on the Report of the Joint Committee on the Draft Constitutional Renewal Bill provides a link to the Joint Committee’s webpage, where a copy of the report has not yet been uploaded. The html version of the report is at: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/jt200708/jtselect/jtconren/166/16602.htm It is a substantial document, providing analysis and recommendations on the…
This morning the Joint Committee on the Constitutional Renewal Bill, of which both Lord Norton and I have been members, published its final report. The benefit of Select Committee reports is that they are often agreed unanimously, across the parties (and, in the case of a joint committee, between the Houses). No such unanimity this…
I was asked in an earlier post whether peers have their favourite places in the chamber. Some benches are designated for particular groups of members – frontbenchers, bishops, privy counsellors – but otherwise back-benchers can sit where they choose. Members tend to gravitate towards a favoured spot. One cannot reserve a seat – it is first…
Second chambers are remarkable for a number of reasons. Most countries don’t have one, though they are common in federal states and Western nations. Though a minority taste, and often controversial, they can serve useful purposes and a number of developing countries and new democracies have established, or are considering establishing, them. The proposal for…
The Joint Committee on the Draft Constitutional Renewal Bill completed work on the draft Bill last Tuesday – the last day of sitting prior to the summer recess. Though the recommended period is a minimum of three months for a committee to engage in pre-legislative scrutiny, we had under three months to examine what constitutes five…
I received an interesting phone call from the News of the World the other day asking if I would be prepared to go on the media and argue against the need for privacy legislation! I am opposed to a privacy law as I have explained elsewhere and it was clear to me that the News…
