1-20 of 40 results for subject:Peers
Librarians' tools
- Search time
- 0.259 seconds
- Solr query time
- 0.006 seconds
- Search query
- subject:Peers
- We searched for
- subject_t:Peers OR subject_t:Lords OR subject_t:"Members of the House of Lords" OR subject_ses:92396
Type
House
Session
Year
Department
Member
Primary member
More
Answering member
Legislative stage
Legislation
Subject
More
Publisher
Can Ministers consider the transition arrangements I have called for? They are: a core of 500 salaried voting Members; a further non-voting but otherwise participating group, declining in membership, who are allowance remunerated with some flexibility on age; and an additional, fully participating voting tier of 100, declining in numbers, available for ministerial appointment but free, on loss of office, to move to non-voting status. That transitional reform avoids much difficulty, protects much of today’s membership and potentially reduces costs and numbers, paving the way to a more comprehensive reform. Could it at least be considered?
Can Ministers consider the transition arrangements I have called for? They are: a core of 500 salaried voting Members; a further non-voting but otherwise participating group, declining in membership, who are allowance remunerated with some flexibility on age; and an additional, fully participating voting tier of 100, declining in numbers, available for ministerial appointment but free, on loss of office, to move to non-voting status. That transitional reform avoids much difficulty, protects much of today’s membership and potentially reduces costs and numbers, paving the way to a more comprehensive reform. Could it at least be considered?
The noble Lord has clearly thought long and hard about this subject. I am not sure I followed entirely every proposal he made, but I am grateful to noble Lords who have come forward with suggestions. I think the House would like something straightforward. I must admit that I am not convinced we should have Members of the House with different status, if that is what he was suggesting. I would like to feel that all Members of the House were treated equally.
To ask the Leader of the House what plans she has to promote awareness among members of the rules and conventions relating to behaviour and courtesy in the Chamber.
To ask the Leader of the House what plans she has to promote awareness among members of the rules and conventions relating to behaviour and courtesy in the Chamber.
My Lords, the Chief Whip and I, with the Front Bench and the usual channels, are committed to promoting the rules and conventions of the House on an ongoing basis. This includes advising on individual items of business and general communications about points of procedure. The Chief Whip, with the usual channels, recently wrote to all Members reminding us of the normal courtesies of the House and expected standards of behaviour. This is to support noble Lords in understanding the rules and conventions. In a self-regulating Chamber, it is crucial that we all maintain high-quality debate, respect for the conventions and respect for each other.
My Lords, having participated remotely in proceedings over three years, I have been able to observe from afar the conduct of Members. Do Members not realise how appalling the House appears to a worldwide audience when Peers, who include some of the brightest people in the land, openly argue, protest, shout across the Chamber and demand who should be called, in an attempt to control contributions? We cannot go on like this; it looks awful. Why not establish a committee of the House to consider whether we would be better served by giving the Speaker greater powers to intervene? The current arrangements demean our reputation. We have a problem and it needs sorting.
My Lords, having participated remotely in proceedings over three years, I have been able to observe from afar the conduct of Members. Do Members not realise how appalling the House appears to a worldwide audience when Peers, who include some of the brightest people in the land, openly argue, protest, shout across the Chamber and demand who should be called, in an attempt to control contributions? We cannot go on like this; it looks awful. Why not establish a committee of the House to consider whether we would be better served by giving the Speaker greater powers to intervene? The current arrangements demean our reputation. We have a problem and it needs sorting.
My Lords, on the first part of the noble Lord’s question, I am impressed if today we have a worldwide audience. I hope that is the case. Nothing is more undignified and disrespectful to colleagues than when others shout so that those with the loudest voices get heard. I have to say, I do not think it happens that often. I am not really encouraged to set up a new committee. The
House itself makes its views known and my noble friend Lord Kennedy, the Chief Whip, has been quite encouraging—let us say—of Members to abide by the conventions and behaviours of the House. I know that for some Members it does seem strange from time to time, but I urge all Members that if we all behave with dignity and respect for others, this should not be a problem.
To ask the Leader of the House what plans she has to promote awareness of the rules of conduct in the Chamber among members of the House of Lords.
To ask the Leader of the House what plans she has to promote awareness of the rules of conduct in the Chamber among members of the House of Lords.
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker, further to his Written Answer on 29 July (HL122), how many non-affiliated members of the House who will not reach the age of 80 by 1 June 2029 were members at the start of the previous session of Parliament; and of those, how many...
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker, further to his Written Answer on 29 July (HL122), how many non-affiliated members of the House who will not reach the age of 80 by 1 June 2029 were members at the start of the previous session of Parliament; and of those, how many...
There are 32 non-affiliated members who will not reach the age of 80 by 1 June 2029 and who were members at the start of the 2023-24 session. Of these, 17 attended 30% or more sitting days of the last session and 12 attended 50% or more sitting days of the last session. These figures reflect the membership of the House as of 24 July 2024.
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker, further to his Written Answer on 29 July (HL122), how many Crossbench members of the House who will not reach the age of 80 by 1 June 2029 were members at the start of the previous session of Parliament; and of those, how many...
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker, further to his Written Answer on 29 July (HL122), how many Crossbench members of the House who will not reach the age of 80 by 1 June 2029 were members at the start of the previous session of Parliament; and of those, how many...
There are 99 Crossbench members who will not reach the age of 80 by 1 June 2029 and who were members at the start of the 2023-24 session. Of these, 53 attended 30% or more sitting days of the last session and 36 attended 50% or more sitting days of the last session. These figures reflect the membership of the House as of 24 July 2024.
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker, further to his Written Answer on 29 July (HL122), how many Conservative members of the House who will not reach the age of 80 by 1 June 2029 were members at the start of the previous session of Parliament; and of those, how many...
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker, further to his Written Answer on 29 July (HL122), how many Conservative members of the House who will not reach the age of 80 by 1 June 2029 were members at the start of the previous session of Parliament; and of those, how many...
There are 182 Conservative members who will not reach the age of 80 by 1 June 2029 and who were members at the start of the 2023-24 session. Of these, 138 attended 30% or more sitting days of the last session and 104 attended 50% or more sitting days of the last session. These figures reflect the membership of the House as of 24 July 2024.
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker, further to his Written Answer on 29 July (HL122), how many Liberal Democrat members of the House who will not reach the age of 80 by 1 June 2029 were members at the start of the previous session of Parliament; and of those, how...
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker, further to his Written Answer on 29 July (HL122), how many Liberal Democrat members of the House who will not reach the age of 80 by 1 June 2029 were members at the start of the previous session of Parliament; and of those, how...
There are 43 Liberal Democrat members who will not reach the age of 80 by 1 June 2029 and who were members at the start of the 2023-24 session. Of these, 40 attended 30% or more sitting days of the last session and 32 attended 50% or more sitting days of the last session. These figures reflect the membership of the House as of 24 July 2024.
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker, further to his Written Answer on 29 July (HL122), how many Labour members of the House who will not reach the age of 80 by 1 June 2029 were members at the start of the previous session of Parliament; and of those, how many...
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker, further to his Written Answer on 29 July (HL122), how many Labour members of the House who will not reach the age of 80 by 1 June 2029 were members at the start of the previous session of Parliament; and of those, how many...
There are 80 Labour members who will not reach the age of 80 by 1 June 2029 and who were members at the start of the 2023-24 session. Of these, 57 attended 30% or more sitting days of the last session and 49 attended 50% or more sitting days of the last session. These figures reflect the membership of the House as of 24 July 2024.
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker how many current members of the House of Lords will be aged 80 or over by 1 June 2029; and what is the breakdown by party group, including cross-bench membership.
To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker how many current members of the House of Lords will be aged 80 or over by 1 June 2029; and what is the breakdown by party group, including cross-bench membership.
A total of 324 current members of the House of Lords will be aged 80 or over on 1 June 2029. The breakdown by party/group is as follows:
92 Labour members
87 Conservative members
87 Crossbench members
37 Liberal Democrat members
12 Non-affiliated members
3 Democratic Unionist Party members
2 Ulster Unionist Party members
1 Conservative Independent member
1 Independent Social Democrat member
1 Independent Ulster Unionist member
1 Plaid Cymru member
These figures reflect the membership of the House as of 24 July 2024.
My Lords, is there not some concern, expressed by some Members in the Commons, that the rules of advocacy are more rigorously enforced in the House of Commons than they are in the House of Lords? Some Members in the Commons feel that if Peers were to be chairmen of APPGs, there might be occasions when elected Members might be embarrassed.
My Lords, is there not some concern, expressed by some Members in the Commons, that the rules of advocacy are more rigorously enforced in the House of Commons than they are in the House of Lords? Some Members in the Commons feel that if Peers were to be chairmen of APPGs, there might be occasions when elected Members might be embarrassed.
My Lords, I am not really qualified to reply to the noble Lord in detail. Suffice it to say, the review that was recently undertaken set out very clearly not only the responsibilities of the MPs who are registered for chairing and accountable for the APPGs, it also gave them opportunities to book rooms, and gave them preference in those matters. It is a balanced approach that was established at that time.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment has been made of whether denying a member of the House of Lords who is a Special Adviser the right to speak is in breach of the letters patent, which refer to "seat" and "voice".
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment has been made of whether denying a member of the House of Lords who is a Special Adviser the right to speak is in breach of the letters patent, which refer to "seat" and "voice".
A member of the House of Lords who is eligible to take part in the work of the House, and who is also a serving special adviser, is not denied the right to speak. It has, however, been an accepted practice under successive administrations that members in that position vote but refrain from speaking.
To ask the Chairman of Committees what is the cost to a Member of the House of Lords of replacing a BlackBerry Curve mobile phone lost by that Member. [HL5151]
To ask the Chairman of Committees what is the cost to a Member of the House of Lords of replacing a BlackBerry Curve mobile phone lost by that Member. [HL5151]
If a Member loses a BlackBerry within the two-year contract period the Member is asked to pay for the replacement device, costing £127.31 plus VAT. If the device is out of contract then the item is replaced free of charge to the Member.
To ask the Chairman of Committees whether the proposed baseline for Members’ finance of £22,141,554 in the House of Lords financial plan for the year 2014–15 includes provision for the payment of expenses or allowances to peers appointed in the period January 2013 to May 2015.[HL4882]
To ask the Chairman of Committees whether the proposed baseline for Members’ finance of £22,141,554 in the House of Lords financial plan for the year 2014–15 includes provision for the payment of expenses or allowances to peers appointed in the period January 2013 to May 2015.[HL4882]
As the scheme of financial support for Members is based on Member attendance, the financial provision is based upon an estimated average daily attendance rather than the number of Members eligible to attend or the date of their appointment. The current financial provision for the years covered by these questions, agreed in December 2012, is based upon the following projected average daily attendance:
2012-13—490;
2013-14—499; and
2014-15—499
These projections were made on the basis of current levels of attendance rather than on any assumptions about future creations of peerages.
To ask the Chairman of Committees whether the House of Lords estimate for Member’s finance for the year 2012–13 of £21,571,500 includes provision for the payment of expenses to newly appointed peers in the same period.[HL4883]
To ask the Chairman of Committees whether the House of Lords estimate for Member’s finance for the year 2012–13 of £21,571,500 includes provision for the payment of expenses to newly appointed peers in the same period.[HL4883]
As the scheme of financial support for Members is based on Member attendance, the financial provision is based upon an estimated average daily attendance rather than the number of Members eligible to attend or the date of their appointment. The current financial provision for the years covered by these questions, agreed in December 2012, is based upon the following projected average daily attendance:
2012-13—490;
2013-14—499; and
2014-15—499
These projections were made on the basis of current levels of attendance rather than on any assumptions about future creations of peerages.
To ask the Chairman of Committees to what extent the introduction of newly-appointed peers to the House of Lords influences the allocation of resources for funding attendance allowances. [HL4884]
To ask the Chairman of Committees to what extent the introduction of newly-appointed peers to the House of Lords influences the allocation of resources for funding attendance allowances. [HL4884]
As the scheme of financial support for Members is based on Member attendance, the financial provision is based upon an estimated average daily attendance rather than the number of Members eligible to attend or the date of their appointment. The current financial provision for the years covered by these questions, agreed in December 2012, is based upon the following projected average daily attendance:
2012-13—490;
2013-14—499; and
2014-15—499
These projections were made on the basis of current levels of attendance rather than on any assumptions about future creations of peerages.
To ask the Chairman of Committees what has been the saving in the budget for members’ insurance arising out of the House of Lords Financial Plan approved in 2010.[HL4698]
To ask the Chairman of Committees what has been the saving in the budget for members’ insurance arising out of the House of Lords Financial Plan approved in 2010.[HL4698]
The expenditure for members’ insurance since the financial plan was approved in 2010 has been as follows:
| Financial
year | £000s |
| 2009-10 | 53 |
| 2010-11 | 16 |
| 2011-12 | 15 |
| 2012-13 | 15 |
This is a saving of £38,000 per year, or 72%.
To ask the Chairman of Committees what was the average daily total claim per member attending the House of Lords in (1) 2009–10, (2) 2010–11, (3) 2011–12, and (4) the first quarter of 2012–13. [HL4528]
To ask the Chairman of Committees what was the average daily total claim per member attending the House of Lords in (1) 2009–10, (2) 2010–11, (3) 2011–12, and (4) the first quarter of 2012–13. [HL4528]
The average daily total claim per member attending the House of Lords was:
2009-10—£270;
2010-11—£284;
2011-12—£281; and
first quarter 2012-13—£287.
These figures include travel costs and other costs claimed under the Members’ finance scheme, full details of which can be found at www.parliament.uk.
To ask the Chairman of Committees what was the average daily attendance in the House of Lords in (1) 2009–10, (2) 2010–11, (3) 2011–12, and (4) the first quarter of 2012–13.[HL4527]
To ask the Chairman of Committees what was the average daily attendance in the House of Lords in (1) 2009–10, (2) 2010–11, (3) 2011–12, and (4) the first quarter of 2012–13.[HL4527]
The average daily attendance for the periods in question is given below. The figures exclude attendances at Select Committee meetings, which do not relate directly to sitting days.
| Period | Average
daily
attendance |
| 1April
2009 to 31 March
2010 | 397 |
| 1
April 2010 to 31 March
2011 | 451 |
| 1
April 2011 to 31 March
2012 | 492 |
| 1
April 2012 to 30 June
2012 | 488 |
To ask the Chairman of Committees what was the total cost of funding members’ travel allowances in (1) 2009-10, (2) 2010-11, and (3) 2011-12.[HL4503]
To ask the Chairman of Committees what was the total cost of funding members’ travel allowances in (1) 2009-10, (2) 2010-11, and (3) 2011-12.[HL4503]
The cost of Members’ travel allowances in each of the years requested was as follows:
2009-10—£1,810,091;
2010-11—£1,700,808; and
2011-12—£2,086,990.