Reform of the House of Lords in British Politics 1970-1992. Lamport, Timothy Ennis
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Reform of the House of Lords in British politics 1970-1992. Lamport, Timothy Ennis The copyright of this thesis rests with the author and no quotation from it or information derived from it may be published without the prior written consent of the author For additional information about this publication click this link. http://qmro.qmul.ac.uk/jspui/handle/123456789/1817 Information about this research object was correct at the time of download; we occasionally make corrections to records, please therefore check the published record when citing. For more information contact [email protected] REFORM OF THE HOUSE OF LORDS IN BRITISH POLITICS 1970-1992 TIMOTHY ENNIS LAMPORT QUEEN MARY PhD Thesis ABSTRACT Perceived obstruction of the Labour government's legislative programme in the mid-1970s sparked renewed interest in tackling the House of Lords. A Labour Party study group recommended outright abolition and this was adopted as policy, notwithstanding questions about the practicalities. The Prime Minister, James Callaghan, failed to prevent this; and his last minute attempt to block its inclusion in the 1979 manifesto, while successful, led to a major row which had significant repercussIons. The alternative policy was then to curtail drastically the Lords' powers, at least as a first step, but the arguments continued into the early 1980s. Labour's policy was a major influence in leading the Conservatives to set up a committee under Lord Home, which in ] 978 came forward with radical proposals, involving a partly or wholly elected chamber. However, these were never formally adopted as Conservative policy and, in office, particularly after the emphatic election victory of 1983, ministers became increasingly complacent and content to maintain the status quo. The Lords meanwhile showed themselves willing to defeat the government on occasion; but while this may have been an irritant, on crucial issues it could usually rely on 'backwoodsmen' to get its way and the Thatcher government seems never seriously to have contemplated legislation. The expenence of opposition in the 1980s led Labour, with the Parliamentary leadership more to the fore in its Policy Review, to change its approach. Now seeing the second chamber as a potential ally in safeguarding future reforms to constitutional and human rights, it supported a fully elected chamber; and the position of the Liberal Democrats was broadly similar. The question of Lords' reform had a significant influence on the politics of the time. illustrating the potential uses and limitations of prime ministerial power and changing perspectives between government and opposition. I hereby confirm that I am solely responsible for the contents of this thesis and that any quotations from the work of others, published or otherwise, are properly acknowledged. I would like to thank all those who gave generously of their time in interviews, who responded by correspondence, or who assisted in arranging access to archive material. I should like to express particular gratitude to Michael Fallon MP for providing access to his papers, as Secretary to Lord Home's Conservative Party Review Committee; to Tony Benn also for providing access to unpublished sections of his diaries; and to Michael Steed for making available his personal files. I am also indebted to Professor Peter Hennessy for his advice and assistance~ and to my wife, Jennie for her help in processing the written material and for her encouragement and support throughout. Tim Lamport CONTENTS Introduction 5 l. Historical Background 13 2. Labour and the House of Lords 1970-76 47 3. Development of Labour's Policy 1976-77 61 4. Labour's Policy and the 1979 Manifesto 90 5. Labour's Policy in the Aftermath of Defeat 1979-83 103 6. Development of Labour's Policy in Opposition 1983-92 130 7. The House of Lords and the Conservatives 1970-79 164 8. The Conservatives in Government 1979-92 200 9. Third Parties and the Second Chamber 234 10. Postscript - Developments since 1992 249 Conclusion 265 Appendix 1 (1) Composition of the House of Lords 274 (2) Party Strengths in the House of Lords 1988-89 274 (3) Changes in Party Strengths in the House of Lords 275 (4) Peerage Creations by Prime Ministers 275 (5) House of Lords Attendance 1989-90 276 (6) I louse of Lords Business 276 (7) Government Defeats in the House of Lords 277 (8) Life Peerage Creations 277 Appendix 2 l..abour Party Machinery of Government Study Group: Membership 278 Bihliography 279 - 5 - INTRODUCTION "We believe the present House of Lords is an outdated institution, completely inappropriate to a modem democratic system of government. It should not, therefore, continue in its present form". (Labour's Programme 1976, p 104) "..... .in our view maintenance of the status quo is not a prudent policy. Indeed, we are doubtful if it is a policy at all." (The House of Lords: The Report of the ConselVative Review Committee. Conservative Central Office, 1978, p 35) As these statements contained in documents issued by the two mam political parties might suggest, there was considerable interest in and speculation about the future of the House of Lords in the late 1970s. Yet, in the event, it was not until 1999 that any changes were implemented, when the Labour government removed the rights of most hereditary peers to sit in the House of Lords. Before that, the last major instance of government legislation aimed at reforming the second chamber had been the abortive attempt of Harold Wilson's Labour government through the Parliament (No.2) Bill of 1969. That episode, the events leading up to it and the immediate aftermath were examined in detail by Janet Morgan in her study covering the period. l No significant legislation in this area was brought before Parliament in the following two decades (other than what were essentially no more than gestures by backbenchers, which stood no realistic chance of reaching the statute book). Nevertheless, there were important developments in the way the I-louse of Lords handled the business that came before it and in its relations with the governments of the day; and the main political parties came forward with proposals for major refoml and even outright abolition of the second chamber. To date. there has been no detaikd study of these, of how and why they came about or of their particular impact. This thesis seeks to fill that gap. ------------------ - - -- - - - - -- ---------------------------- - - - - - - ----------.. _---------------------------- Jant't Morgan The House of Lords and Il1t' J abour (iollcrnment /964-/970 (Oxford at th(' ('larend')11 Press, 1975). - 6 - Documentation is available on the actual composition and the workings (If the House of Lords over much of the period - for instance. in Donald SheWs definitive book; in a PhD thesis by Nicholas Baldwin; in the detailed study in the 1988-89 Parliamentary Session, edited by Shell and Beamish; and in a wider study of the workings of Parliament by John Griffith and others.2 There are also various contemporary pamphlets by individuals and organisations: and, more recently, material produced in the run up to the 1999 legislation, such as the report by the Constitution Unit and the book of which the former Leader of the Lords, Ivor Richard, was joint author; also the government's White Paper itself, plus the subsequent report of the Royal Commission under Lord Wakeham) The House of Lords itself has also issued various infonnation and briefing papers. However, while many of these are extremely useful in providing a contemporary snapshot of the House of Lords, in showing how it dealt with particular issues or legislation, in outlining earlier reforms or proposals, or in discussing particular alternatives for reform, including their respective merits and demerits, none of them covers, to any substantial degree, the policy developments involving the main political parties of the 1970s and the 1980s, the events surrounding them and their consequences. Shell's book does mention these briefly, but, while making some pertinent observations, it, like the others, does not set out to provide an in-depth study and analysis of them (as, for instance. Morgan was able to do for the preceding period). ') Donald Shell: The /louse of Lords (2nd edition. Harvester Wheatsbeaf, J992): Nicholas Baldwin Tht' Contempomry Houst' of Lords (unpublished PhD thesis, Universih of Exeter. 1985): Donald Shell and David Beamish: The House of Lords at Work (Clarendon Press. 1993). 3 JAG Griffith and Michael RyJe with M A J Wlwl'icl Booth: Parliament - Functiol1.'. Pr.1cticc and ProCt'dllrc (Sweet and Maxwell. 19~9): (\mstiitution Unit: Reform of tht' HOUSt' of J ords (1996): lvor Richard and Damit'n Welfare: l in finished Busincs, Rcfof7JJ//I/:! tbe /JOUSt' 01 Lords (Vinta~e. 19(4): .'\10(it'misinl! Parliament: R('J(lmlllJp. tbe IIClIl."(' of i on/..... em 41K3 (IIMSO. January 14')9). R(llrd Commissiol1 on the Rc/of7l1 oj tht' /lOUSt' 01 J Old, !\ House for the Futuft' ( 'm 4.'34. IIMSO, January 2(00) - 7 - Moreover, few of the published diaries, autobiographies or biographies of the period have much, if anything, to say on this. There are a few exceptions from the Conservative side, such as the memoirs by two prominent peers, Lords Carrington and Hailsham.4 In addition, another former Cabinet minister, Ian Gilmour, has some interesting observations about the relationship between the Thatcher government and the Lords, as, albeit In brief references, do his colleagues Nicholas Ridley and William Whitelaw.5 Similarly, despite the considerable interest aroused by policy developments at the time, they are hardly mentioned by Labour politicians, beyond, in some cases, noting the difficulties the Labour government ran into with its legislation in the Lords. This applies even to Tony Benn in his diaries, notwithstanding his close involvement as a member of Labour's National Executive.