BRITISH PRIME MINISTER STUDIES PLANS FOR MULTI-FAITH LORDS

Creation of a "multi-faith" House of Lords where Muslim imams could sit alongside Anglican and Catholic bishops is suggested in a paper drawn up by Tory officials calling for wide ranging reforms to the Upper House. Currently 26 Anglican bishops have seats in the Lords. But Nick Clegg, the Deputy Prime Minister, is drawing up a separate bill setting out changes including the eviction of hundreds of existing peers, including the bishops, while at least 80% of new members are elected. The Prime Minister is said to favour his party’s idea because he is determined that the House of Lords not be turned into a secular institution and that it retains a link with faith-based organisations. 

Mr Clegg's bill, which is being negotiated with senior Conservative ministers and the Labour frontbench, is expected to be unveiled in coming months. Senior Conservatives are drawing up a range of alternative reform proposals, amid fears that Mr Clegg's changes are too radical. Mr Clegg wants to abolish the 26 bishops or "Lords Spiritual" who are all drawn from the Church of England. Conservatives hope to counter that by proposing the Lords Spiritual become multi-faith. That would mean a range of Christian denominations, including Roman Catholics and black Pentecostal leaders, sitting on a bench of "spiritual peers” whose numbers might also include representatives of Islam. 

The prospect of imams sitting alongside bishops will raise questions about the links between church and state. Tory insiders point out there are already Catholic, Muslim and Jewish peers in the Lords. Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks is a life peer, as is the Chairman of the Conservative Party, Baroness Warsi, a Muslim. One senior Tory insider said: "If we continue with a faith element to the Lords, Catholic bishops and black Pentecostal leaders must be represented. Therefore we must consider whether other faiths should be represented as well. "Having imams in the House of Lords may upset some people. "Britain is not solely Christian, so this would seem a natural solution." 

The Tories' alternative plan is thought to include proposals to phase in elected peers rather than introduce them in one go. One proposal gathering pace is for 76 new peers to be elected in the first instance, based on boundaries used for European elections. The size of the House would be cut from 792 to about 500. Currently, the house is so overcrowded that peers often jostle for seats, and speeches sometimes have to be limited to three minutes each. Hundreds do not have desks or offices. One proposal to reduce the size of the House involves bringing in a retirement age of 75 – the same as high court judges- which would eject several hundred peers immediately. 

Many Tories are concerned that having an 80% elected chamber may embolden members to constantly challenge the authority of the Commons and thus risk constitutional crisis. Mr Cameron is considering whether to accept Mr Clegg's proposal for a majority elected element in order to shore up the Deputy Prime Minister who is unpopular with the electorate. Lords reform is a long-standing Liberal Democratic commitment and part of the party's wider constitutional reform agenda. Mr Clegg's plans are currently being considered by a cross-party Leaders Group. All the three main parties' manifestos contain a commitment to some form of elected second chamber. 

Neither Conservative nor Labour peers will be bullied into what they see as bad reform. "The Lords must be an effective revising chamber, not a blocking chamber nor a retirement home for MPs," said one Conservative insider. The Conservative Christian Fellowship has issued a statement saying: "Christians need to enter the debate and make it clear that we value the presence of the Lords Spiritual, but this doesn't have to mean unquestioning support for the status quo. There is an argument that our legislature would benefit from the wisdom of a wider range of Christian leaders. “A broad bench of Lords Spiritual drawn from a range of churches could provide a powerful vision of unity."