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Feb 9, 2024 · When the House of Lords is sitting, the mace, the symbol of royal authority, is placed on the rear of the woolsack, behind the lord speaker. To “keep dignity and order” members must not pass between the woolsack and any member who is speaking, or between the woolsack and the table.
The House of Lords is characterised by independence of thought and a commitment to in-depth consideration of public policy. • Members who belong to political parties are not subject to the same degree of discipline as in the House of Commons – they do not necessarily vote according to their party’s policy.
Clerk of the Parliaments. The Clerk of the Parliaments in the most senior official in the Lords and is responsible for the management, administration and finances, alongside responsibilities in the chamber during business as the chief procedural advisor to the House.
- Who Is Eligible to Sit in The House of Lords?
- What Are The Different Routes Into The House of Lords?
- How Are Appointees to The House of Lords Vetted?
- Can Peers Choose to Give Up Their Membership of The House of Lords?
- Can Hereditary Peers Renounce Their Titles?
- Can Peers Be Expelled Or Suspended from The House of Lords?
- Can A Peer Have Their Title removed?
Members of the House of Lords are often referred to as ‘peers’ – a peerage being a title granted to a person by the King (for example, duke, earl or baron). But not everyone with a peerage is eligible to sit in the Lords. Since reforms in 1999, only a small number of people who hold hereditary peerages sit in the Lords. Most Lords members are life ...
There are three main ways to become a member of the House of Lords: 1. by appointment (either political or non-political) 2. by hereditary entitlement 3. by virtue of holding a specific role Appointments Most members of the Lords are appointed as life peers. Life peerages were created by the Life Peerages Act 1958. Life peers are appointed for the ...
Since 2000, all appointments to the House of Lords have been overseen by HOLAC, an independent commission comprised of a chair and six members – three unaffiliated to any party and three representing the main political parties. HOLAC is tasked with vetting all nominations for life peerages to ensure propriety. It then makes recommendations to the p...
Yes. Peerages are held until a person’s death, but the House of Lords Reform Act 2014 allows peers to resign as sitting members. To do this, they must give written notice to the clerk of the parliaments – the most senior impartial official in the Lords. Resignations cannot be rescinded. Giving up membership of the House of Lords is separate from gi...
Yes – though again, renouncing a hereditary peerage is separate from retiring or resigning as a sitting member of the Lords. Under the Peerage Act 1963, any hereditary peer (sitting or not) can disclaim their title. To do this, they must give an ‘instrument of disclaimer’ to the lords chancellor within 12 months of succeeding to a peerage (or, if t...
Yes. Reform acts passed in 2014 and 2015 mean that there are now specific conditions in which sitting peers may be expelled or temporarily suspended from the House. These include: Conviction and imprisonment (with a custodial sentence for at least one year) – in which case a peer is expelled from the Lords Breaking the House of Lords Code of Conduc...
Yes, but this is procedurally difficult as it requires primary legislation – and so is rare. This last happened during the First World War, when the Titles Deprivation Act 1917 gave the government power to remove peerages from peers who “during the present war [have] borne arms against His Majesty or His Allies, or who have adhered to His Majesty’s...
The Woolsack is the seat of the Lord Speaker in the House of Lords. It is a large square cushion of wool covered in red cloth and is stuffed with wool brought from around the Commonwealth. The tradition of the Woolsack dates back to the reign of Edward III when the wool trade was one of the most important parts of the economy.
Tabling is the act of formally putting forward a question, a motion or an amendment in the Commons or the Lords. Members of either House do this by submitting it to the procedural clerks by hand, by post or, in some circumstances, digitally.
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What is seating in the House of Lords?
The Clerk of the Parliaments, or another clerk, sits in the chamber at the table of the house during sittings, and calls on items of business. At the start of a sitting all three table clerks (Clerk of the Parliaments, Clerk Assistant and Reading Clerk) are normally present.
