THE HOUSE OF LORDS

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 209, 28 May 1908, Page 7

THE HOUSE OF LORDS

LORD CURZON'S YIEWS. COLONIAL REPRESENTATION. ANOTHER CONFERENCE. BY TELEGRAPH —PRESS ASSOCIATION —COPYRIGHT. London, May 26. In-his speech at the-Empire banquet at tho Hotel Cecil, Lord Curzon said he thought a reformed House of Lords should bo a means of affording greater representation for the colonies and dependencies. The time was not ripo for an Imperial deliberative council, though that would come, but Imperial conferences supplied tho means of common consultations. Before long there would be another conference, perhaps under another minister, followed by better results. THE CURZON PLAN. As long ago as 1888, Lord Dunraven introduced a Bill for reform of tho House of Lords by adding (inter alia) ten peers for the colonies,, two for the Itoman Catholics, two for PrpteTtant Dissenters, two for science, letters, and sound learning generally.' Lord Curzon, who is a member of tho House of Lords' Self-Re-form Committee, has detailed his proposals as follows:— .... "I should,hope to see tho principle of life peerages admitted on a large scale, ■ partly as a counterpoise to the hereditary element, partly .with a view to representing classes of the community or of the public service, .such as tho different religious denominations (other than .the Church of England), the Labour organisations, the Indian Civil Service, the Colonies, and other important interests. "Might not the power also be given to a Prime Minister to recommend the appomtmgnt of a considerable (though not unlimited) number of life Peers in tho first session of a new Parliament, so as to produce a closer. correspondence, if desired, between the strength of parties in the two Houses ? I hold most strongly that the hereditary Peer, who is debarred from tho House, of Lords, should at. liberty to enter tho -House of Commons.