Questions

1. How do individuals become members of the House of Lords?
2. Summarise the role and functions of the House of Lords.
3. Explain the relationship between the House of Commons and the Lords.
4. What was the effect of the Parliament Acts of 1911 and 1949?
5. What was the effect of the House of Lords Act 1999?
6. What are the arguments in favour of an elected second chamber? What are the arguments against?

Answers

1. They can be nominated by political parties (including the Prime Minister), by the public, or by themselves.
2. It is an important revising and scrutinising chamber. The Lords’ main functions are scrutinising and challenging the government, investigating and debating issues of public interest, and scrutinising and revising legislation. It can also act as a check on constitutional change by the Commons.
3. The House of Commons has primacy as the elected chamber of Parliament. Its primacy over the Lords was cemented by the Parliament Act 1911, particularly over finance.
4. The 1911 Parliament Act reduced the Lords’ legislative powers over public bills introduced in the Commons by replacing the right of veto with a delaying power of two years (apart from Bills trying to extend the life of a Parliament). This was reduced to one year by the Parliament Act 1949. The Acts allow specified bills to be passed without the consent of the House of Lords.
5. It ended the right of hereditary peers to sit and vote in the Lords.
6. Arguments in favour of an elected second chamber include: the majority of bicameral chambers around the world are elected; it ensures that law-makers are accountable to the electorate and provides democratic legitimacy. The arguments against: a wholly elected House of Lords would challenge the democratic authority of the Commons, could increase the possibility of competitive power struggles, would lose the constitutional safeguard provided by its current diversity, and would divide accountability for voters.