House of Lords Proposals

There have been many **House of Lords Proposals** in the Model House of Commons over the years. However, despite the many attempts to start a House of Lords, a truly functional version has never been created.

When the MHoC was first created in 2005, some members suggested that a House of Lords should run alongside the elected House of Commons. People did not figure out what role a Model House of Lords would play and there was simply not enough activity for it to be a success. Therefore, the ideas were scrapped, leaving a 'House of Lords' in the TSR Parliament that had no power and didn't play any role in the MHoC at all.

In February 2007, Roger Kirk brought up the idea of a House of Lords again. He suggested that a House of Lords could be created for selected people who are no longer MPs and the Speaker could go. The reasons for having it were put forward as follows:

* As a way to acknowledge the contribution to the Parliament those people who no longer have a formal position.
* To make those who have an understanding of the Parliament and its rules stand out to new members.
* To create a 'who's who' of some of the most influential or committed people in the Parliament.

The idea was discussed but was negatively received. Following a vote, the 'leave it as it is' option prospered and Roger Kirk's reforms were put on hold indefinitely.

In July 2010, Jangrafess put forward an amendment which proposed to create a second chamber which would be known as the Model House of Lords. His amendment promised that the MHoL would only fulfil a symbolic role and it would not affect the running of the MHoC in any way. However, many MPs were opposed to the various membership qualifications and a controversial clause which stated that 'any MP being disrespectful to a TSR Peer may have their seat suspended at the Speaker's discretion until they issue a formal apology to the TSR Peer in the Commons Bar.' The amendment was voted on but it failed by 18 votes to 11.

In April 2012, the Government decided it wanted to create a Model House of Lords and asked Lipvig to establish a Model House of Lords Establishment Committee (MHoLEC) which he subsequently did. He estimated that it would take four a half months to present the committee's proposals to the House. The MHoLEC received a mixed reaction but nevertheless, it appeared as though a Model House of Lords would be going ahead. However, a series of delays ensued and CyclopsRock even released a statement to discuss the future of the committee. In the end, there was not enough interest or progress and the project was shut down.

In May 2014, Cryptographic put forward an amendment which, among other things, proposed to create a Model House of Lords. The main role of MHoL MPs under his amendment would be to serve on a committee which would assist the Speaker and the House. However, when put to MHoC members, the amendment was not particularly supported and Cryptographic removed the MHoL section when he created a second reading. Despite this setback, RayApparently started another Model House of Lords debate a few days later, suggesting that a House of Lords could act as a 'think-tank' that would only vote on and propose amendments to the Commons, but when senior MHoC members including Birchington and toronto353 publicly criticised his ideas, this plan failed as well.

PetrosAC put forward an amendment of his own in July 2015 to create a Model House of Lords. He suggested that it could become another place to debate topical issues and that the Crisis Committee could become one of its functions. However, many members believed that such a creation could lead to a large decrease in activity in the House of Commons. As many people voted against than in favour (21) so as a result, the amendment narrowly failed.

During Jacob E's third attempt to shut down the Crisis Committee in December 2016, RayApparently said that he hoped the Crisis Committee subforum would become a Model House of Lords. However, TheDefiniteArticle strongly disagreed, saying that it would just become a 'status chamber'.

In April 2017, Aph put forward an amendment that would give members the opportunity to become lords and would create a 'Lords Chamber'. However, this amendment received a negative response with LifeIsFine saying 'I think this will just add bureaucracy to the house' and Gladstone1885 saying 'I feel like the great thing about the MHoC is that we all participate in a unified House rather than going off and having two.'

Some MHoC members still hope to create a House to honour former and current members, but with many believing that it shouldn't be able to debate legislation, this has resulted in accusations of a lack of purpose for a Model House of Lords.

## External Links

* 2007 House of Lords Proposal
* A65 - Second Chamber Amendment 2010
* Model House of Lords Establishment Committee
* Future of the MHoLEC Statement
* A94 - MHoC Reform Amendment 2014 (First Reading)
* RayApparently's Discussion
* A112 - MHoL Amendment 2015
* A181 - MHoL Amendment 2017