HOUSE OF LORDS

Evening Post, Volume CV, Issue 124, 26 May 1923, Page 8

HOUSE OF LORDS

QUESTION OF REFORM SOME ASTONISHING FIGURES BETTER ATTACK "UPON THE .-,'" GOVERNMENT. (7ROM OCR OWN CORRESPONDENT.) ■ . LONDON, 28th March. In 1920 there were 664 temporal peers, of whom 195 never came near the House of Lords at all, and 180 were there fewer than ten times. In 1921 the numbers were 674, 240, and 220, and in 1922 out 0f.684 temporal peers, 189 never attended the House, and 222 were there fewer than ten times. These figures were c^uoted in the Lords by Lord Newton, who moved that the number of peers should bo reduced. The spiritual peers, he said, includ- j ed a certain number of ecclesiastical backwoodsmen, -who were prevented by their duties from attending; then there were 30 minors, and 30 ladies who would probably enter eventually over the prostrate forms of the Marquis Curzon and Lord Birkenhead', unless the House reduced its numbers. At present the number of spiritual and temporal peers was 726, but the potential number would be swelled by the minors and the ladies. The House was not only larger than the House of Commons, but more than double the size of any other second Chamber in the world. The number who took part in the deliberations was, however, very small; the whole of the talking was done by fifty or sixty, and the regular attendance was 150 to 200. .-•_." He did not blame peers for their reticence; it was commendable that so many should ' attend and yet refrain from boring their fellows. . He was acquainted with some noible lords who nad never been in the Chamber, and did not intend ever to come. One whom he knew said he was too clever for that assembly. Many, of course, were busy public men; but there was jjqc a busier man than Lord Curzon, and if you wrote to Lord Curzon you would get a reply next day, written by himself; if you wrote to an absentee peer, you would . probably get no reply ;at all, or, if you did, it, would be written by the butler. yiSCOTJNT ROTHERMERE'S • ■ ABSENCE.

'Among those who failed to attend at all was Viscount Rothermere, who was the most .fanatical, and consistent opponent of His Majesty's Government. ■■" 1 suppose," Lord Newton continued, S' that it is a matter of taste, and you '■•. cannot account for people's tastes. But '.if I had as great grievances against the ■Government as Viscount Rothermere ap- ., pears to have, I would prefer to come . down here and have it; out with Lord Curzon rather than turn to hirelings and ■'■ office boys to attack him in leading ar- ." tides in the organs which belong' to .him. (Laughter.) I firmly believe that you could get rid of half the members of this House without their being aware of it, by assort of political i athanasia." His idea would be a Chamber of 250 or 300 members of high standing, with a certain number- of elect- . Ted..peers, elected on some such procedure ■".; as that of the Scottish representative peers, but for a longer term than that of a Parliament. . , Lord . Newton's free comments .brought up several defencfers of the /status quo, some of them gladiators of . .fast Constitutional combats. EARL OP BIRKENHEAD'S OUTBURST. The chief feature of the debate was lord Birkenhead's speech. Seldom has such a scene been staged in the House of Lords. The discussion had travelled along conventional and uneventful lines for two or three hours, and then came '(Lord Curzon to agree that, there were ■too many peers, and to say that the • Government hoped to do something on '"this exceedingly difficult question " "later on. " When!" snapped Lord Birk- ; enhead. ' ' •- ■ Lord Curzon replied that an undertaking had been given by Mr. Bonar Law, that no one expected it to be redeemed in the first month or the first year, and that the task would bo undertaken "later on." "I see Lord Curzon sitting side by . tide with Lord Salisbury," said Lord Birkenhead, with the ghost of a smile which betokened trouble. He recalled . how for many months he sat on a House of Lords Reform Committee, with Lord Curzon, during the reign of the late .> Coalition Government, "while the whole Conservative Party outside the Coali- " tion was making the case against us that while there was a risk of an immediate . Socialist Government, we were neglecting the reform of the House of Lords, and running the risk that the Parliament Act might remain completely in force." His voice became harsher. "I vemem- \ .hex," he said, "how Lord Salisbury, who now sits by Lord Curzon's side, came galloping clown to the House of Lords with : a resolution for the reform of the House '"': of Lords entirely,. inconsistent .with the : .,..: proposals, for which Lord Curzon and I "' svere responsible. ■■ -.■■■■ j THE DOLLY SISTERS. "I remember Lord Selborne and Lord Younger going down to meetings of the National Union of Conservative Associations, and carrying resolutions hostile to Lord Curzon and myself, because we . were neglecting the.reform of the House . of Lords. Lord Selborne used to come down to the Hduse of Lords from the National Union, and back to the National Union from the House of Lords, very often taking Lord Younger with him, and, very often taking Lord Salisbury. The one case against the Coalition Government was that it was neglecting the chance of setting up a bulwark against Socialism. I will, not say that Lord Salisbury and Lord Selborne were the twin brothers of the movement. They [were the Dolly Sisters." His voice took on added scorn as he proceeded. He banged the box and took an occasional sip of water. "Now we have^ a Conservative Government in power," he sneered, "and wo are told that at last we have got rid of Coalition intrigues. Lord Salisbury does not talk quite as often in the presence of Lord Curzon as be used to talk of the dishonesty of the Coalition. They have, I I suppose, compounded their differences. "SHIFTING OPPORTUNISTS." -"We, the Coalition Government, were ■ incapable of making a'real contribution '." to this pressing problem because we. were I ; 'shifting opportunists.' Now we have ■the enormous advantage of seeing Lord . -Curzon sitting side by side with Lord Salisbury. We have tho advantage of knowing we have got rid, once for all, of these shifting necessities of opportunism. We have a Conservative Government that knows its own mind. We ' have, thank God, an honest Govern- • meht;" The last words came with an almost incredible bitterness. Lord Birkenhead expressed his frieridlir ness for Lord Curzon. , "But," he said, "when I see sitting by him Lord Salisbury, who for four years pursued us .;: ,with malignant criticism, who impeached ■- 'us not merely with criticism of whether r" we were right or wrong in our decisions, ■but who impeached our morality and -■|he honesty^.of the_ .Qovernment oj wiycfc

Lord Curzon was a member, then, I rejoice at the vicissitudes and the paradoxes of "politics." It is impossible to reproduce the gloating harshness of the last few words. Lord Birkenhead sat back in his seat.

Lord Selborne rose, well under control, to say that Mr. Bonar Law had made the reform pledge publicly, and that if the time came when the Government did not fulfil it he should repeat his protests. Lord Birkenhead jumped up again. "May I count on the noble lord's support in three years' time?" he asked superciliously. "You can count on my support to do all I possibly can to make this Government reform the Second Chamber." snapped Lord Selborne, and then the peers walked out to talk about the sensation of the evening.