HOUSE OF LORDS.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 111, 3 February 1908, Page 7

HOUSE OF LORDS.

SEIMEFORM. LORD GURZON ON THE COMMITTEE. TELEGRAM —PRESS ASSOCIATION —COPYRIGHT. London, January 31. On tho motion of the Earl of Rosebory, in ,ho Honso of Lords, n Select Committee has joen appointed to consider and report upon :ho' suggestions which have from timo to :inio been made for increasing tho efficiency if tho Houso of Lords in matters of legislation;. • With tho oscoption that Lord Curzon replaces Lord Clonbrock, tho committee is tho samo as that which was appointed last year, and of .which Lord Roseborj' was chairman. LORD CURZON'S PROPOSAL. The effort of the llouso of Lords at selfreform froiii within—us against the constitutional reform which the Government talks about carrying in the House of Commons-is thus; continued from last .year, tlio old mitted .'having been reappointed with >he important addition of the latest-s>tting Peer Lord Curzon. Some of Lord Curzon s ideas in tho way of reform are known, for they ha\o been jriit by him in writing, in a letter to Lord .Curzon compares tlio Peers reforming lhems«iv«s to the Japanese nobles, who divested "themselves of many of t h eir prerogatives to build .up a reformed Constitution, 110 advocates that Unionists should associate themselves with "a definite and welWhoughtout plan of reform, designed to he principal criticisms urged against tho House of Lords, namely:— .• " , : (1) Its undue numbers and sparse at(ii) The absence froni it ot represen- ■ Natives of important ... (3) Tlio excessive predominance ot ono political party. , , "I should like to see the Ministers• of the Crown permitted to speak in. both Houses,; as is done in many foreign countries. "The r important thing is the adoption of reform a.ya principle by 'the. pjvrty; by .who " alone, so far as can be seen, it is at all llKeij to bo successfully carried into effect. . ."I should hope to see tho principle of lite peerages admitted on a "go scale, parUy as a counterpoise to . tho hereditary clement nartlv with a.'view to representing classes oi the community or; of the nublic service,, sue as the different religious denominations (other than the Church: of England) the Labour .organisations,- tlio Indian Civil, Service, tho Colonies,, and other,. important interests. • • • "Might.not the power also be given „o a Prime Minister to recommend the . appointmcnt of a considerable (though not unlimited) number of life Peers ill tho, first; session of a new Parliament, so as to produco 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' the House of Lords,' should be at liberty to enter:the . Lord Newton proposed in his Bill thnt.jn order to -reduce the number of herpditai) Peers in the Chamber, the hereditary Peers of England should bo placed, oil the same basis as those of Scotland , and Ireland; that is: they should'elect a certain number to rePfeo 'tte'proposai, Lord Curaon ; is doubt: fnl lTp writes:—"Even with minority representation, tho criticism that one party should continue to., he unduly represented might be held ,to apply." ■ ,' . . . .