The House of Lords' Functions - Essay Example

?The House of Lords Introduction: The United Kingdom Parliament is composed of two houses, the House of Commons and the House of Lords. Both houses are independent of each other. Although they often clash in principles they complement each other in the process of law-making. This paper shall focus on the second chamber and look into the changes in its composition and powers brought about by legislation between the years 1911 and 1999. The House of Lords that we know today trace is origins back to the 11th century. Anglo-Saxon Kings regularly consult with Witans or Witenagemots, which is composed of religious leaders, the King’s ministers, feudal landowners and magnates. By the 13th century, composition of the King’s council was expanded to include representatives from the different counties, cities and boroughs of the Kingdom.12 In 1295, Edward I established the first formal parliament.3 In the 14th century, the parliament was divided into two distinct houses. The representatives of shires and boroughs made up the House of Commons while the religious leaders, magnates and feudal landowners made up the House of Lords.4 The membership of the House of Lords is further divided into the Lords Spiritual and Lords Temporal. The former is composed of Bishops and ranking churchmen while the latter is composed of Dukes, Marquesses, Earls, Viscounts and Barons whose seats in the upper house are hereditary. 5 From the time the House of Lords was organized, it had been subjected to constant calls for reforms. Its composition and powers have changed overtime; it even survived abolition and managed to resurrect itself into the realm of the British governmental structure. By the end of the 19th century, the Lords had equal powers to the House of Commons with regard to the passage of public and private legislations. The only exception is the “Commons financial privilege” which gives the lower house total control with regard to initiating bills that grant aids to impose charges on the citizens.6 However, it was in the 20th century when the Upper House saw a great number of moves to institutionalize reforms, most of which were initiated from the House of Commons. Legislations were introduced to reform the composition of the Lords especially on the matter of hereditary peers. Reforms on the Lords’ powers are also constantly proposed especially on the abolition of its powers to delay legislations introduced by the House of Commons. Within the span of 88 years, there were five legislations that made significant changes in the composition and powers of the House of Lords, namely, the Parliament Act of 1911, The Parliament Act of 1949, the Life Peerages Act of 1958, the Peerage Act of 1963 and the House of Lords Act of 1999. The Parliament Act of 1911  Prompted by the Lords’ enormous powers when the Upper House rejected the Lloyd George’s budget by a landslide vote in 1909, the House of Commons sprang into action and introduced bills and resolutions that aim to limit the powers of the Lords. After much debate in both chambers, the Parliament Act was finally enacted into law in August 1911.7 The Parliament Act of 1911 instituted limitations on the powers of the Lords, especially its power to delay or reject bills it does not like. Firstly, Money Bills which have been certified by the Speaker as such shall receive Royal Assent even without the consent of the Second Chamber.8 Money bills are legislations on taxation and government spending where the Lords do not have any veto power.9 When the Commons transmit to the House of Lords a money bill, it shall receive Royal Assent if a month had passed and the Lords had not acted on it. Secondly, Parliamentary Act of 1911 virtually eliminated the Lord’s power to perpetually delay and archive legislations passed by the House of Commons. One of its salient features is the provision which makes public bills into an Act of Parliament, with or without the consent of the House of Lords. When a bill is passed by the lower house in three consecutive sessions and with an interval of two years between the first Second reading and its approval from the chamber, the Lords may not sit on it because it shall become a law even without their consent.10 Exceptions to this rule are private bills, bills that extend the length of parliament for more than five years, bills that were transmitted to the House of Lords with less than a month before their session end and bills which originated from the Upper Chamber.11 Finally, the third most important feature of the Parliament Act of 1911 was the reduction of the maximum length of Parliament by two years making it five years from the original seven years.12 With its success in implementing reforms in the House of Lords, the Commons moved further by commissioning different committees to conduct studies and report on other reforms needed in the Upper House. In 1918, Viscount Bryce delivered his committee’s report which tackled on the need for reforms on both the power and composition of the second chamber.13 Then in the next two decades that followed, the parliament apparently regards reforms in the House of Lords as an important agenda. Within the span of twenty years, similar committees were organized and several bills were introduced in both houses but all never made it into law. The Parliament Act 1949  The Parliament Act of 1949 was essentially an amendment to the Parliament Act of 1911. Apparently, the Commons were not satisfied with the limitations imposed on the Lords’ delaying powers which the latter used in full. As a matter of fact, the Parliament Act of 1949 became a law by virtue of the provisions of its 1911 predecessor. The Lords tried to quash the parliament bill but it was still passed into law after it was reintroduced by the Commons the following year. The amendments made by the later Parliament Act include the further reduction of the requirements for passing a bill into law without the Lords’ consent. As amended, the required number of consecutive sessions wherein the Commons must pass a bill is made into two from the original three sessions. Moreover, from the original two years, the amended Parliament Act now requires only a period of one year between the first Second Reading and its final passing in the House of Commons.14 Thereafter, several important legislations were passed under the provisions of the Parliament Act of 1949, namely, the War Crimes Act of 1991, the European Parliamentary Elections Act of 1999, the amendment to the Sexual Offences Act in 2000, and the Hunting Act of 2004. Interestingly, the two Parliament Acts focused on the powers of the House of Lords. No significant changes have been made regarding its composition. It was not after the Peerages Acts were passed when the composition of the Upper House was finally changed. Life Peerages Act of 1958 The concept of having life peers was introduced by the MacMillan Conservative Government through the passage in 1958 of the Life Peerage Act.15 This law granted power to the Monarchy to bestow Peer status for an unlimited number of persons, both men and women. Aside from the introduction of appointive peers, the law marks the introduction of female Lords. These new members of the Lords Temporal sit in the Upper house with full voting powers. However, unlike hereditary peers, their peerages are non transferrable and expire upon their death. 16 This system effectively allows the monarchy to upgrade the composition of the House of Lords by appointing persons who have rendered or would render valuable services to the Kingdom by reason of their skills, education and other special attributes worthy of a seat in the Second Chamber. Peerage Act of 1963 The Peerage Act of 1963 expanded the right of women to sit and vote in the House of Lords by allowing female heirs to succeed to their parent’s hereditary peerage.17 In addition, the law also provides for the terms wherein hereditary peers and peeresses may disclaim their peerage for life.18 Renouncing one’s peerage would have the effect of making the peerage dormant for the lifetime of the disclaiming peer. Upon his death, the peerage would be inherited by his heirs as if it had not been disclaimed. Those who disclaimed their peerage in the House of Lords are nonetheless eligible for an elective seat in the House of Commons.19 For a period of three decades, several bills were introduced to make further reforms in the House of Lords. No less than the Queen herself has stressed on the need for reforms in the Upper House in order to make it attuned to the present needs of the parliament and the kingdom as a whole. In her 1967-68 speech, Queen Elizabeth declared that, "Legislation will be introduced to reduce the powers of the House of Lords and to eliminate its present hereditary basis, thereby enabling it to develop within the framework of a modern Parliamentary system.”20 House of Lords Act of 1999 The battle for reform in the House of Lords ended the 20th century with a bang when the House of Lords Act was passed into law on November 11, 1999. After a century of glorious fighting, the government succeeded in stripping hundreds of hereditary peers of their rights to sit and vote in the House of Lords. As a form of compromise, Lord Weatherhill was able to negotiate for the retention of only 92 hereditary peers. 21 Apparently, the introduction of appointive peers to the Upper Chamber has greatly affected the clout and position of hereditary peers which lead to their eventual defeat at the turn of the century. The Debate for Reform Continues Now in the 21st century, the debate for reform in the House of Lords remains a hot issue and an important agenda in the parliament of UK. However, a total overhaul of the House of Lords is a long and hard battle. Hence, the proponents for change are taking the enemy down piece by piece. Recently in 2005, the Constitutional Reform Act took effect which established a Supreme Court that is totally independent and separate from the House of Lords.22 In effect, it has also significantly modified the powers of the Lord Chancellor. Although the office of the Lord Chancellor survived attacks on its very existence, the reformists were able to remove its judicial powers. The Lord Chancellor lost its position as the head of the judiciary and as the appointing authority for judges. Finally, the position of the Lord Chancellor itself was stripped of its previous glory when the Constitutional Reform Act mandated that the opportunity to become Lord Chancellor is no longer an exclusive privilege of a lawyer, a judge or a peer of the House of Lords.23 Admittedly, the current composition and powers of the second chamber has plenty of rooms for improvement. But of all the possible issues, the most contested issue is on its compositions, particularly, the outcry for an Upper House elected by the citizens to institutionalize public accountability among the Lords. The reforms are also designed at creating a House of Lords that is truly representative of the people of the United Kingdom. The reformists have proposed four models for the restructured Upper House, namely, the nominated chamber, the directly elected chamber, an indirectly elected chamber and a mixed chamber.24 Regardless of the model followed in reforming the composition of the second chamber, there will be advantages and disadvantages. The task here is to maximize the benefits to the people and to minimize its adverse effects on the government structure and the performance of its functions in the Kingdom. Several scholars have conducted studies and presented possible effects of these reforms. One of which is the research published by the House of Lords Library Note which enumerated the “Possible Implications of House of Lords Reform.”25 Among others, it raised the issue of duplication if both houses are elected by the citizens which could result in a significant loss of expertise which the House of Lords currently possess by virtue of its select appointments. A review of the current proposals for reform will reveal an overwhelming call for change in its composition with a marked difference in comparison to calls for reform on the powers of the Lords. Reforming the composition of the House of Lords will definitely result in concomitant reforms in its powers and functions. The government would be more willing to grant more powers to the second chamber if it trusts its power holders. Therefore, the change in its structure and composition needs to be finalized first before discussion on changes in the powers and functions of the House of Lords shall commence. References: Cruse, Ian. Possible Implications of House of Lords Reform. House of Lords Library Note. June 25, 2010. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.parliament.uk/documents/lords-information-office/Possible%20Implications%20of%20House%20of%20Lords%20Reform.pdf Gay, Oonagh Gay. The Constitutional Reform Act 2005-the role of the Lord Chancellor. November 14, 2005. House of Commons Library. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons/lib/research/briefings/snpc-03792.pdf Goodbye to all that? The House of Lords: An Ignoble History. March 9, 2007. The Independent. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/goodbye-to-all-that-the-house-of-lords-an-ignoble-history-439471.html Guide to Parliament. BBC News. October 11, 2007. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/6999646.stm House of Lords. History of the House of Lords. 2008. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.parliament.uk/documents/lords-information-office/hoflbphistory.pdf History of the House of Lords. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/ld199798/ldbrief/ldhist.htm Legislation Affecting the House of Lords. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.parliament.uk/about/faqs/house-of-lords-faqs/lords-legislation/ Reform and Proposals for Reform since 1900. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/ld199798/ldbrief/ldreform.htm The House of Lords. The White Paper. Chapter 8. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.centreforcitizenship.org/wp8.html Bibliography: Clarke, Chris and Purvis, Matthew. House of Lords Reform Since 1997: A Chronology (updated July 2009). July 31, 2009. House of Lords Library Note. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.parliament.uk/documents/lords-library/hllreformchronology.pdf Deadman, Hugo. Proposals for the Reform of the Composition and Powers of the House of Lords, 1968–1998. July 14, 1998. House of Lords Library Note. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.parliament.uk/documents/lords-library/hllreform.pdf Gay, Oonagh Gay. The Constitutional Reform Act 2005-the role of the Lord Chancellor. November 14, 2005. House of Commons Library. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons/lib/research/briefings/snpc-03792.pdf Goodbye to all that? The House of Lords: An Ignoble History. March 9, 2007. The Independent. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/goodbye-to-all-that-the-house-of-lords-an-ignoble-history-439471.html Guide to Parliament. BBC News. October 11, 2007. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/6999646.stm House of Lords. History of the House of Lords. 2008. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.parliament.uk/documents/lords-information-office/hoflbphistory.pdf History of the House of Lords. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/ld199798/ldbrief/ldhist.htm Legislation Affecting the House of Lords. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.parliament.uk/about/faqs/house-of-lords-faqs/lords-legislation/ Reform and Proposals for Reform since 1900. Accessed on June 21, 2011. Available at http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/ld199798/ldbrief/ldreform.htm Read More