This week marks a year since the House of Commons established a new Modernisation Committee. In this post, Tom Fleming reviews the committee’s first year.
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Category Archives: Parliament
Monitor 90: Labour and the constitution, one year on
Monitor 90, published today, provides an analysis of constitutional events over the last four months, a period in which the Unit hosted its annual conference and celebrated its thirtieth anniversary, and the Starmer government marked its first year in office. This post, by Meg Russell and Alan Renwick, which also serves as the issue’s lead article, argues that the government’s constitutional scorecard is mixed. The bill to remove hereditary peers from parliament has made significant progress, but further reform of the Lords feels a long way off. Keir Starmer’s relationship with his own backbenchers has deteriorated rapidly, with significant effects on government bills. Attacks on judges and the rule of law remain disturbingly common. Away from Westminster, an English devolution bill has been tabled, and measures aimed at increasing respect for democracy have been taken in Scotland and Wales. This post argues that the public still feel that politicians are not being straight with them, and that this perception needs to be fixed for democracy to function effectively.
Continue readingHouse of Commons procedure: why does it matter and how does it change?
House of Commons procedure combines formal rules with conventions and precedents, providing the framework for conducting business and making decisions. Hannah Kelly, Lisa James and Meg Russell explain why it matters, how it evolves, and what future changes have been proposed.
Continue reading10 reasons why the hereditary peers bill should be amended to constrain Prime Ministerial patronage and the size of the House of Lords
The government’s House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill reaches its report stage in the chamber this week – presenting a serious moment for possible amendments. Meg Russell argues that peers should amend the bill to place constraints on the Prime Minister’s ability to appoint unlimited numbers of members to the chamber. This level of unconstrained patronage power is inappropriate in a modern age, and brings the House of Lords and politics as a whole into disrepute. It drives the chamber’s ever-increasing size (now standing at over 850), which should be capped at no larger than the House of Commons. Public opinion overwhelmingly supports this change, and it has long been the settled view of the House of Lords. Another legislative vehicle to implement this essential change may not present itself for decades, so peers should seize the opportunity while they can.
Continue readingLabour and the constitution: (almost) one year on
The Constitution Unit’s annual conference takes place next week, bringing together a wide range of speakers to discuss ‘Labour’s Constitutional Agenda in Office’. Starting with a keynote address by Minister for the Cabinet Office Nick Thomas-Symonds, the conference will assess Labour’s performance so far, and its options for the future, across a range of constitutional policy areas. Ahead of the conference, Lisa James analyses the progress so far against the commitments in Labour’s manifesto.
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