MPs to investigate House of Lords membership in new inquiry

21 June 2023

The Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee today launches a new inquiry into the membership of the House of Lords, including the appointments process, its size, and the role and responsibilities of Peers.

The Committee will examine whether the current appointments system produces an effective and trusted chamber and whether the rules governing that process could be improved. The role and powers of the independent vetting body, the House of Lords Appointments Commission (HOLAC) will also be considered.

MPs are also seeking evidence on the House of Lords’ relationship to the House of Commons, to understand the extent to which the Lords continues to effectively carry out its role as a ‘revising chamber’.

Chair's comments

William Wragg MP, Chair of PACAC, 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.”

In 2018, the predecessor Committee recommended that the Government reduce and cap the number of Lords to 600 as a matter of urgency, echoing recommendations made by the Lord Speaker’s Committees in its 2017 report (‘the Burns Report’). The predecessor Committee called for greater diversity of representation in the House, reform of the appointments process, and a greater role for HOLAC. It also called on the Prime Minister and leaders of the opposition to commit to the principle of ‘two-out one-in' as a way to reduce the overall size of the House of Lords.

Inquiry terms of reference

The Committee welcomes submissions addressing any or all the following themes:

Appointments to the House of Lords

Are the current arrangements for appointments to the House of Lords sufficiently robust to produce an effective and trusted Chamber?
What reforms, if any, should be made to the current appointments process?
How should the rules governing the appointments process be set out? Is guidance and convention sufficient or is a statutory basis for such appointments required?

House of Lords Appointments Committee (HOLAC)

Is HOLAC carrying out its role effectively?
Are changes needed to the role and powers of HOLAC? If so, what, how and why?

Size and membership

How effective is the House of Lords in its current size?
Should the size of the House of Lords be limited? If so, to what size and how will that be achieved?
Should there be a term limit for membership to the House of Lords?
How effective are current arrangements/processes for removing or suspending Members from the House of Lords?
What expectations should be placed on Peers as regards participation in House of Lords business?

Role of the House of Lords and relationship to the House of Commons

Is the House of Lords still effectively carrying out its role as the ‘Revising Chamber’?
What other roles should the House of Lords perform in the UK constitutional arrangements?

Written submissions

Send a written submission to the inquiry into Membership of the House of Lords here.