Research Briefing
House of Lords: Largest Votes Recorded
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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In Focus
House of Lords: remote participation and hybrid proceedings
In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the House of Lords agreed to introduce virtual participation in debates to allow for social distancing and help prevent the spread of the virus. It has also introduced remote voting in divisions. This In Focus article considers the impact of these changes and discussions about which changes should be retained.
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In Focus
Office of the Whistleblower Bill [HL]
Calls for reform to the UK’s legislative framework for whistleblowing have increased in recent years. The Office of the Whistleblower Bill would require the establishment of a new body to provide guidance and support to whistleblowers, amongst other things. This article looks at what the bill would do, why it has been introduced, and parliamentary discussion that has taken place on the subject.
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In Focus
May 2021 state opening of parliament: precedents for reduced ceremonials
The Government has stated that the state opening of parliament and Queen’s Speech scheduled for 11 May 2021 will take place with reduced ceremonial elements due to the coronavirus pandemic. This In Focus looks at how this can differ from a traditional state opening.
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In Focus
Lord speaker election: April 2021
The lord speaker, along with their deputies, chairs the business of the House of Lords and has certain other procedural, ceremonial and ambassadorial functions. As a result of the resignation of the current Lord Speaker, Lord Fowler, an election for a new lord speaker will be held in April 2021.
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In Focus
Challenging for equality in Parliament: How women won their place in the House of Lords
To mark International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month, we take a look at how women fought for and won their right to sit in the House of Lords.
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In Focus
House of Lords: Scrutiny of the new UK-EU relationship
Relations between the UK and the EU entered a new phase in 2021, following the end of the Brexit transition period and the agreement of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement. While those negotiations are now over, UK-EU relations remain of significant policy interest. This article looks at opportunities for the House of Lords to scrutinise the new relationship through committee activity, post-legislative scrutiny, holding ministers to account and interparliamentary cooperation.
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In Focus
House of Lords: Impact of virtual and hybrid sittings in 2020
In 2020, following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, the House of Lords made several changes to the way it conducted its business. This included the use of virtual proceedings and sittings which featured both physical and remote participation. This briefing looks at the impact of those changes on member participation over the course of 2020.
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In Focus
Representation of women in the House of Lords
It has been over 60 years since women gained the right to join the House of Lords. Today, just under a third of members are women. Why is the number of women not equal to that of men?
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Research Briefing
Lords Membership: How Many Women Have Sat in the Lords?
This House of Lords Library briefing provides lists of the female life Peers and the female hereditary Peers who have been Members of the House of Lords.
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Research Briefing
House of Lords: Backgrounds in Public Life—February 2021
This briefing lists current members of the House of Lords who have held selected roles in public life. The chosen senior positions range across politics, government, defence, the judiciary, education, culture, media, and religion.
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In Focus
Lords public bill stages: “That this bill do now pass”
The motion “that this bill do now pass” is moved immediately after a bill’s final stage in the House of Lords (known as third reading). It is amendable and so provides an opportunity for the House to oppose, delay or record a view on a measure if there is enough support. This article provides examples of amendments to the motion and what the outcome was each time.
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Research Briefing
Lords Appointments: Life peerages created since 1958
In 2020, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced 58 new life peers. This took the total number of life peers created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 to 1,517. This briefing provides information and statistics on these peerage creations. This includes breakdowns by decade and by prime minister. It also contains a list of every life peer appointed under the Act.
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In Focus
New Lords appointments: December 2020
This article analyses the new peers announced in December 2020 by the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, and the 79 peers he has appointed in total since taking office.
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Research Briefing
Size of the House of Lords: November 2020 Update
This briefing provides an update on the size of the House of Lords and recent statements on the issue following the new peerages announced this year. As at 20 November 2020, the size of the absolute membership was 820. This represented an increase in the size of the membership from the end of the 2017–19 session, but is lower than the peak of 845 at the end of the 2015–16 session.
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