The resignation of Labour peer Lord Sewel following allegations of both drug taking and involvements with prostitutes, has reopened debate over the future of the UK's second chamber of parliament, which has never been accountable to the electorate.
So what are the alternatives, and do we even need a second chamber? I am not sure that everyone would agree that to fix it, you simply have the whole damn place elected and it is problem solved. Indeed, one Liberal Democrat peer has suggested we could potentially scrap a second chamber completely, if the House of Commons were to be significantly expanded. There are all sorts of questions.
For instance, Britain's general elections struggle to get massive turnouts compared to other major democracies. This is in part due to the discredited First Past The Post/Winner Takes All voting system. So on that note, it is hardly likely that First Past The Post elections for a second chamber would inspire huge public interest either.
Could we have a second chamber elected on a more proportional system, as assemblies in London, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland do? As one party would be unlikely to ever have an overall majority by itself, and as each member would be accountable to the electorate, I would certainly be in favour, at least in principle.
Prime Minister Dave (and no doubt any mid-term Tory successor) would I am sure want to avoid this Proportional Representation (PR) path. Along with sections of the opposition Labour Party, David Cameron is not in favour of allowing each British citizen a fair vote at general elections.
What many Tories and Labourites alike want is to retain the status quo that is First Past The Post, which presents them with the best chance of forming a single party government. On that note, I have no doubt they would be reluctant for the people to get to know a proportional system better, and appreciate the merits of PR.
Another route of Lords reform to go down would be to follow the example of Germany's Bundesrat, which is not directly elected. Each German region (or lander) sends representatives who are members of the regional governments.
As England currently does not have regional assemblies, this kind of path could reopen another debate. Although I would personally favour regional assemblies, some people would no doubt be quick to point out that the North-East decisively rejected devolution in 2004.
In a previous debate with a good friend who has a different view to myself on this issue, I have suggested that the House of Commons could in part be reduced in size to accommodate this extra layer in government. My friend was of the view that the public finances were not sound for doing this.
In terms of numbers, I will introduce an interesting comparison. Britain's House of Lords has about 800 members, which will probably only get bigger under the current arrangements, as the current Prime Minister and future PMs continue to appoint new allies as members of the club. Although Germany may well have this extra layer of government that is regional assemblies, it's Bundesrat only has 69 members!
The one thing that is clear to myself regards the future of Britain's second chamber is that reform of the House of Lords is not an issue all on it's own. As I have pointed out here, the pathways of Lords reform lead into other constitutional issues and debates. The main question now is how long the current government will try and duck the issue?
So what are the alternatives, and do we even need a second chamber? I am not sure that everyone would agree that to fix it, you simply have the whole damn place elected and it is problem solved. Indeed, one Liberal Democrat peer has suggested we could potentially scrap a second chamber completely, if the House of Commons were to be significantly expanded. There are all sorts of questions.
For instance, Britain's general elections struggle to get massive turnouts compared to other major democracies. This is in part due to the discredited First Past The Post/Winner Takes All voting system. So on that note, it is hardly likely that First Past The Post elections for a second chamber would inspire huge public interest either.
Could we have a second chamber elected on a more proportional system, as assemblies in London, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland do? As one party would be unlikely to ever have an overall majority by itself, and as each member would be accountable to the electorate, I would certainly be in favour, at least in principle.
Prime Minister Dave (and no doubt any mid-term Tory successor) would I am sure want to avoid this Proportional Representation (PR) path. Along with sections of the opposition Labour Party, David Cameron is not in favour of allowing each British citizen a fair vote at general elections.
What many Tories and Labourites alike want is to retain the status quo that is First Past The Post, which presents them with the best chance of forming a single party government. On that note, I have no doubt they would be reluctant for the people to get to know a proportional system better, and appreciate the merits of PR.
Another route of Lords reform to go down would be to follow the example of Germany's Bundesrat, which is not directly elected. Each German region (or lander) sends representatives who are members of the regional governments.
As England currently does not have regional assemblies, this kind of path could reopen another debate. Although I would personally favour regional assemblies, some people would no doubt be quick to point out that the North-East decisively rejected devolution in 2004.
In a previous debate with a good friend who has a different view to myself on this issue, I have suggested that the House of Commons could in part be reduced in size to accommodate this extra layer in government. My friend was of the view that the public finances were not sound for doing this.
In terms of numbers, I will introduce an interesting comparison. Britain's House of Lords has about 800 members, which will probably only get bigger under the current arrangements, as the current Prime Minister and future PMs continue to appoint new allies as members of the club. Although Germany may well have this extra layer of government that is regional assemblies, it's Bundesrat only has 69 members!
The one thing that is clear to myself regards the future of Britain's second chamber is that reform of the House of Lords is not an issue all on it's own. As I have pointed out here, the pathways of Lords reform lead into other constitutional issues and debates. The main question now is how long the current government will try and duck the issue?
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