So far, the Lords have inflicted eight substantial defeats on the Government with amendments to the EU Withdrawal Bill. The latest defeat last night, would if ever enacted, allow the Lords to block Brexit through a complicated series of triggers, thereby reversing the result of the referendum. This was tabled by Lord Hailsham.
The irony of the largest democratic vote in British history being overturned by the unelected denizens of our Upper House seems entirely to escape the Lords. While it is indeed their job to scrutinise legislation, it is not their role to frustrate the attempts of the Government to fulfil the clearly expressed wishes of the electorate. It’s worth noting that some of those who spoke loudest and longest last night were Lib Dem peers, members of the only party expressly dedicated to reversing Brexit or holding a second referendum. There are currently 109 Lib Dem peers, many created as a sop to Nick Clegg following the Coalition government. In contrast, at the last election, only eight Lib Dem MPs were elected, making their influence in the upper house entirely disproportionate.
This nexus of unearned power with a group of disenfranchised, disgruntled grandees like Lord Heseltine, Lord Patten and Lord Deben, is potentially toxic. Certainly, I believe this behaviour bodes ill for the Lords’ long term. While the Government may have a fight on its hands to get Brexit through, this determination to ignore the will of the people will be remembered, and any future Government with a decent majority will legislate to change it. My guess is that it will inevitably ensure the eventual demise of an appointed upper house.