A WESTMINSTER committee has launched an inquiry into the House of Lords, with MPs set to investigate the appointments process following calls for Boris Johnson's honours list to be scrapped.
The Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee (PACAC) announced the inquiry, with the probe to look at the size and role of peers in the second chamber plus the role and powers of the vetting body the House of Lords Appointments Commission (HOLAC).
It comes after former prime minister Johnson’s honours list prompted outrage. After he was found guilty by the Privileges Committee of misleading the Commons, and subsequently quit as a Tory MP, there were calls for the honours list to be rescinded, with hundreds of thousands of people signing a petition to block the appointments.
And, Labour leader Keir Starmer is reportedly planning to flood the House of Lords with new peers to “level the playing field” if his party wins the next election.
Starmer has been called out across the political spectrum for the plan, as he had previously repeatedly pledged to abolish the unelected chamber altogether.
William Wragg, the Tory MP and chair of PACAC, is a vocal Johnson critic.
There are currently 263 Tory peers, 183 crossbench, 174 Labour, 84 LibDems, and 36 non-affiliated members. The second chamber also has 25 bishops, six DUP peers, two Greens, two Ulster Unionist Party, one Conservative independent, one independent Social Democrat, one Plaid Cymru member and the Lord Speaker.
Overall, the Lords has 779 members, while the Commons has 650.
The inquiry is set to examine whether the current appointment system “produces an effective and trusted chamber” and whether rules around the process can be improved.
MPs are also calling for evidence to be submitted on the Lords relationship to the Commons, and to examine the extent to which the second chamber “effectively” carries out its role as a revising chamber.
Wragg said: “The House of Lords plays an important constitutional role in the UK political system but there has long been concern about its size, membership and the appointments process.
“Previous inquiries from parliamentary committees concluded with clear recommendations to reduce the size of the chamber and reform the appointments process to maintain confidence in the Lords.
“The Government committed to review the matter, yet five years on we have seen no sign of reform, and large numbers of new members continue to be appointed.
“Debates about wholesale reform of the second chamber have been around for decades, but this inquiry seeks to consider the immediate questions that cannot wait for such reform before they are addressed.”
The inquiry themes will focus on the appointment process, what reforms could be made, and if guidance should be produced governing the scheme.
It will also investigate whether HOLAC is carrying out its role effectively and if any changes are needed to the scope of its role and powers.
MPs will also look at how effective the Lords is at its current size, if there should be a limit on the number of peers, and if there should be a term limit. There are still a number of Lords members who are either life or hereditary peers.
The effectiveness of the process to suspend or remove peers from the Lords will also be investigated.
