Members of the House of Commons may now vote by proxy in certain circumstances. In contrast, the practice has been prohibited in the House of Lords for over 150 years. What is the background to the rule against proxy voting in the second chamber?
Documents to download
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House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) (Abolition of By-Elections) Bill (141 KB, PDF)
The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) (Abolition of By-Elections) Bill is a private member’s bill introduced by Lord Grocott (Labour). The Bill seeks to amend the House of Lords Act 1999 to remove the system of by-elections currently used to fill vacancies caused by the death, resignation or expulsion of individuals who are Members of the House of Lords by virtue of a hereditary peerage. The Bill has one substantive clause, which would prevent any future vacancy among the 92 hereditary Members of the House from being filled via the current system of by-elections. Instead, such vacancies would lapse, and the departing hereditary Member would not be replaced.
Documents to download
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House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) (Abolition of By-Elections) Bill (141 KB, PDF)
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What have been the largest ever votes in the House of Lords? This briefing provides a list of divisions since 1999 where 500 or more Members have voted.
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This article analyses the 36 new peerages announced by the Prime Minister on 31 July 2020. It provides statistics on the background, gender and party affiliation of the new peers. The article also compares the number and gender balance of peers created by Boris Johnson with those of the former Prime Ministers Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Theresa May.
