The Columbia evening Missourian., 1922-12-22
REFORM FACES
ENGLISH LORDS
Change Threatens Power OF Up
per House in Parlia-
mcnt.

By uaifed Press
Loxpos tBy Mail, The House O
Lords, England's Legislative upper cham
.er is threatened with the reformers axe
From the democratic viewpoint, the
House of Lords is probably the mosl
reactionary senate to be found in any
rouatry today. The thing that makes
,eforn absolutely essential in these dem
,cratic DAYS is the fact that the great
majority of its numbers hold their seats
BY virtue Of descent from some peer
who was summoned to some medieval
parliament by a warrior monarch, who
did not greatly care about the rights
of mere common folk.
Under the unwritten constitution OF
Britain. the House Of Lords consists OF
Princes Of the Blood. and the Lords
Spiritual and Temporal"
lust how to modernize the House OF
Lords is a question on which scarcely
two people agree. The older type Of
pc,itical thinker insists that the mere
fact that a peer does not have to worry
about getting himself elected or re-elect-
ed. places him above momentary and
possibly unhealthy" agitation and scares,
and renders him filter for impartial re-
yising legislative work.
For many generations it has been an
axiom Of British politics that the Lords
NAV not interfere with national finance
or taxation.
Premier Asquith's Liberal Government
came back with a small majority. after
the 1910 election and proceeded to pass
the Parliament Act'-more popularity
known as the Lords Veto Bill'-which
specifically barred the Lords touching any
measure certified by the speaker OF the .
House Of Commons as money bill. 1t
also limited the Lords veto to delaying
the passage of any bill more than two /
year%provided no election intevened
and the House of Commons still desired
to enact the measure.
One Of the pledges Lloyd George had
to give to the Conservatives, in order
TO secure their support to his Coalition
Government after the war was to intro
duce a measure Of real reform" of the
Lords and since then he has been able
TO sidestep the question as the Cabinet
was apparently unable to agree what
form the reform should take. For ex-
ample, Lord Chancellor Birkenhead de-
sires to have partly-elected. partly
nominated Senate with supreme revising
powers, something along the lines Of the
United States and Continental senaies.
Others insist on the retention Of some
form of hereditary system. Again 9TH
CTS point out that in a real Upper House,
not only the Church Of England but 9TH
er religions should be represented among
the clergy-if indeed, they are to be
This, however. would cut right
across the established State religion.
The frst move, toward reform. was
made when the government introduced a
'e-ies Of resolutions (which will have to
be submitted to and approved by the
king. in order TO get around constitu-
tional rOcks) providing for a partly
elective, partly nominaiiye house, whose
would be limited to $50. 1t
was also proposed 10 abolish the man.
date as to what constitutes money
biI' and leave decisions on this point
to joint committee Of both houses. II
Promptly Liberals and Labor men rais-
I'd the cry that this would give the Lords I
power to tamper with taxation and ex-
penditure. Liberals, in fact, are strongly
opposed to any alteration of their beloved \
Veto Bill" Laborites are also suspici.
BUS of any body on which they fear
hey would never obtain strong repres-
entation
An election is regarded as inevitable
before any definite steps can be taken.
This would necessitate the whole scheme
being gone into again-according to the I
'iewpoint Of the party successful at the {.
POLLS.