HOUSE OF COMMONS
LONDON SW1A 0AA
- Dr Kim Howells MP
Minister of State for the Middle East & South Asia, Foreign & Commonwealth Office
4" July 2007
Mr Jonathan Bishop
8 Heol y Parc
Efail Isat
PONTYPRIDD
CF38 1AN
Dear Mr Bishop,
I enclose, for your information and observations, a copy of the reply which I have
received from the Leader of the House in relation to the matter that you raised.
Best wishes,
Yours sincerely,
Lom fella
DR KIM HOWELLS
Member of Parliament for Pontypridd
Constituency Address: 16 Tyfica Road, Pontypridd CF37 2DA
Tel: 01443 402551 Fax; 01443 485628i
LEADER OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS
Dover House
Whitehall
LONDON SW1A 2AU
Tel: 020 7276 1005 Fax: 0207276 1006
Your Ref: 10031
Our Ref: MP4474
21 June 2007
dee (line,
MR JONATHAN BISHOP, 8 HEOL-Y-PARC, EFAIL ISAF, PONTYPRIDD,
CF38 1AN
Thank you for your letter of 1“June enclosing correspondence from your constituent, Mr
Jonathan Bishop, on House of Lords Reform,
Mr Bishop has suggested that members of a reformed second chamber should be selected
from various organisations. The Royal Commission on Reform of the House of Lords
considered the issue of indirect election in 2000. The Commission concluded that there
exists a number of obstacles and issues of principle which dissuaded it from this approach.
‘The Commission thought that there would be practical difficulties in reaching agreement on
which institutions should be represented and on the balance between those institutions within
the House of Lords. The Government agrees with the Commission’s conclusions, as set out
on page 33 of the White Paper, The House of Lords: Reform. It can be viewed at:
NV. nt/cm7
In the debates and free votes in the House of Commons on 6 and 7 March Members voted to
remove the remaining hereditary peers and for an 80% elected and 100% elected House of
Lords. The debates and votes in the House of Lords on 12, 13 and 14 March resulted in a
vote for a 100% appointed House of Lords. Any changes to the system of appointment to the
House of Lords will be considered in the wider context of the debate on House of Lords
reform.
The Leader of the House Jack Straw has now reconvened the cross-party group, which he
chairs, to assess the outcome of the debate and free votes in both Houses and to discuss the
range of views held on the electoral system. He will retum to the House of Commons to
make a detailed statement on the way forward.
email: leader@commonsleader.x.gsi-gov.uk
www.commonsleader.gov.uk
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