Labour plans to replace Lords with wholly elected chamber

The Labour Government plans to replace the 700-year-old House of Lords with a wholly elected second chamber that will call time on the automatic presence of Church of England bishops.

Justice Secretary Jack Straw is expected to propose the establishment of a 300-seat second chamber similar to the US Senate, in which legislators will be elected by the public similar. In details leaked to The Sunday Telegraph, members of the new chamber would have to be UK residents and could face a “recall ballot” if their competency was in question.

A new ICM poll commissioned by the Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust out today found that 74 per cent of the population, including 70 per cent of those who described themselves as Christians, agree it is wrong that some Church of England bishops are given an automatic seat in the House of Lords.

According to the poll of more than 1,000 adults, 43 per cent of people said it was important that institutional religion play a role in public life. Eighty-four per cent of Muslims believe it is important that “organised religion” plays a role in public life, compared with 50 per cent of Christians.

Sixty-five per cent of those polled said it was important that anyone who sits in the House of Commons or Lords and votes on laws is elected.

In the last few days, more than 50,000 people have signed up to the Power2010 campaign calling upon the 26 bishops in the House of Lords to support an elected second chamber.

Power2010 sends letters to the bishops for every sign-up and has been backed by a coalition of organisations, including religious think-tank Ekklesia and the Student Christian Movement.

Simon Barrow, co-director of the think-tank Ekklesia, said: "The unprecedented degree of interest shown in enlisting the Lords Spiritual to back change, rather than to be washed up on the shores of history, shows a real appetite for democratic renewal.

“The idea that 'people don't care', which has often been used to justify an outmoded status quo, is simply not tenable anymore."

The Bishop of Croydon, the Rt Rev Nick Baines, questioned the significance of support for the campaign, saying it “cannot be seen to exemplify mass conviction about the place of bishops in the second chamber”.

Although Bishop Baines does not sit in the House of Lords, he defended the presence of unelected bishops, arguing that it did not make the second chamber any less democratic.

He said: “One of the recognised glories of the House of Lords is the ability of experienced and learned people – many of whom would never stand for election – to contribute intelligently and fearlessly to important legislative debate.

“To sacrifice this on the altar of some narrow and naive assumption about what makes a society ’democratic’ would be absurd – like cutting off your nose to spite your face. It feels a bit like being led by inverse snobbery.”

Labour’s reform proposals are being regarded as an attempt to cast the Conservatives as the party of inherited privilege just two months ahead of the general election, which is likely to be held on May 6.