HOUSE OF LORDS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1123, 10 May 1911, Page 5

HOUSE OF LORDS.

OPPOSITION REFORM BILL. LORD LANSDOWNE OUTLINES HIS 1 SCHEME. g - 1 CHARACTER OF THE NEW I HOUSE. t r A REPLY BY LORD MORLEY. J i: By Tolccranh—Press Association-CopyrirUt j (llcc. May 9, 10.40 p.m.) <1 London, May 9. } Immense interest was manifested in 1 yesterday's sitting of (lie House of Lords, when Lord Lansdowne, Leader of tile ' Opposition in the Chamber, introduced his lleform Dill. The iioor of the House was crowded j with Peers, and among tiie members oi' ' tho House of Commons who filled the small side galleries allotted to them ' nere notieed, besides several members of tho Government, Sir Robert Finlay, K.C., the ex-Attorney-Gcneral, who was one of the main props of the Balfour Administration, and who is regarded as tho principal draughtsman of the measure to be introduced. Constitution of the Chamber. Tho Bill, which was read a first time, proposes that the House of Lords shall be constituted of 310 members, the seats being allotted as follow:— Elected by the hereditary Peers from among their own number 100 Nominated by the Crown through the Prime Minister :••• Elected by outside constituencies for twelve-year terms, one-fourth of the number retiring every third year The Princes of the Blood Royal ... 3 The Archbishops of Canterbury and York 2 Five Bishops to bo elected by the entire Episcopal Bench 5 Law Lords, Judges cf the Court of Appeal Total 310 The Unionist Ideal. I,ord Lansdowne, in addressing the Rouse, lilted tint the reform of the House of Lords should proceed simultaneously with the measure dealing with the relations of the two Houses. The Unionists desired a Second Chamber which would command the confidence cf the country by its ability, experience, and authority, and. . above all, by its independence: o Chamber ; which might bo trusted- to use its powers fairly towardsJioth great parties, and be in close touch with public opinion without ■ being at die mercy of popular caprice: a Chamber strong enough to make'a stand where there was reason to believe the country liad not an opportunity of expressing its will clearly and deliberately. Lord Lansdowne, continuing, said he did not claim that (lie proposed Chamber . should have co-ordinato rights with tho House of Commons. Heredity should no ; longer entitle a Peer to a seat, and thus , only tlioso Peers would bo eligible who i possessed certain statutory qualifications, : which, with election by their compeers, would prove their fitness and eligibility. The schedule enumerating these qualifications included Peers who had held political office or important appointments at Homo or abroad, who had been members of the Privy Council, the Diplomatic Service, or the Army Council, captains in the Navy and colonels on the Active List. Method of Election.. . Tho other provisions of the measure were explained by Lord Lansdowne as follow; :— Tho Bill proposes that the nominations by the Crown shall be proportionate to the strength of parties in the House of C'om- • mons. ■ The election of (ho 120 representative i men is to be by doctoral colleges, cam- > posed of Commoners representing constituencies within each district. Each college will elect from three to twelve members, ! and any Peer is to bo eligible for election. ' Tho order of retirement of the elected ! members is to be determined in the first [ instance by ballot. , : Ths Archbishops are to sit during their 1 tenure of their Sees, and the Law Lords [ for life. Tho elections are to be in accordance r with an Ordcr-in-Council, and provision ! is made for the representation of minorities. ' • The creation of new peerages is not to , exceed five in one year. > Any Peer, unless lie be a Lord of Parlia- - ment, is to be eligible for a scat in the [ House of Commons. ■ < , 1 Not a Betrayal. ! Lord Lansdowne, in emphasising the - gravity of the change, reminded those who • possibly regarded the Bill as almost a bc- • trayal, that some changes of the sort wero J almost inescapable.. The Bill was in the t interest of the stability of some institutions which had never been'threatened as they were that moment. In - concluding, Lord Lansdowne mentioned that joint sittings of the two Houses would be held settle differences under the schcme, and as a last resort a referendum would be taken. He invited t Lord Morley to disclose the Government's solution of the matter. Government Attitude. j Lord Morley, Lord President of the Council, replying on behalf of the Gor--0 eminent, admitted that Lord Lansdowne j had taken a bold, frank, and possibly a useful course. The Government did not desire to obstruct the Bill, but was unable to accept it as a solution. It retained the _ hereditary principle, and it was so complicated, that if it wore submitted to a re--0 ferendum it would bring the referendum s into disrepute. e e THE GOVERNMENT PLAN. A SMi.LL ELECTIVE HOUSE. London, May 8. 1 Ono passage in Mr. Asquith's recent t speech at Manchester was given prominence—namely, that the Second Chamber " must be small • and not rest on a liorcditary basis. "It must not claim to bo a t co-ordinate, competing authority, and r> must not be predominantly one-sided and e partisan. Unless those conditions are satisfied wo shall bo no parties to a J change." s 5 THE VETO BILL. f " THIRD READING ON MONDAY. (Ree. May 10, 0.5 a.m.) London, May 9. r Mr. Asquith, as a further concession to 1- the Unionists, has postponed the third r reading of tho Veto Bill until Monday.