Introduction (House of Lords)

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The introduction is a ceremony in the British House of Lords to be introduced with the new members in their office. Introductions to the House of Lords are usually more solemn than introductions to the House of Commons .

procedure

The introduction takes about five minutes at the beginning of a session. There are usually no more than two introductions per day, exceptionally three when there are a large number of appointments. Each member has two supporters, usually (but not necessarily) from their own party or group.

An oath ( The Oath of Allegiance ) must be taken by all members or a solemn affirmation must be given before they can sit in the House of Lords and vote. Members take the oath at the inauguration, at the beginning of each new parliament, and when a monarch dies. When they take the oath, members also sign that they will obey the House of Lords Code of Conduct when performing their parliamentary duties.

The first speech a newly inducted member makes is the Maiden Speech . This takes place during a parliamentary debate and is traditionally received with respect from the House of Lords, i. H. without interruptions and with congratulations from the following speaker. The speech itself is short and indisputable and does not express any views that could cause interruption.

origin

Originally, the sovereign appointed peers himself and personally introduced them to office. Personal introduction was abolished in the 17th century and the ceremony of introduction to the House of Lords was first practiced in 1621. Over time, the ceremony became more complex. Several reforms followed in 1998 at the initiative of the Select Committee .

Rules for introduction

Ceremonial introductions were originally intended for all new members of the House of Lords. In 1663 it was decided that the peers who inherited a title would not be introduced. This also applies to hereditary peers who are elected to office under the House of Lords Act 1999 . When a hereditary peer becomes a lifelong peer, an induction is made, unless that person was previously in office prior to the House of Lords Act 1999.

The spiritual lords (twenty-six bishops of the Church of England who are members of the House of Lords) are also introduced after their appointment, albeit with a separate ceremony. A new induction ceremony takes place when a spiritual lord takes over another bishopric.

Ceremony for secular lords

The induction ceremony, which was used before 1998, was far more complex than the current ceremony. In the original ceremony, the Lord Chancellor in a robe or a deputy in a parliamentary robe sat on the woolsack . A procession formed outside the chamber in the following order:

  1. The Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod or his deputy
  2. The Garter Principal King of Arms or other herald.
  3. The junior supporter of the new peer
  4. The new lord
  5. The senior supporter of the new peer

The supporters are members of the House of Lords in the same rank as the new peer. Accordingly, a duke supports a duke , a marquess a marquess, etc. The new peer and his supporters wear parliamentary robes and special hats. The procession moves towards the Lord Chancellor , where the Garter Principal, King of Arms, shows the certificate of authority with which the sovereign appoints the new peer. The new peer kneels before the Lord Chancellor and presents his summons with which the sovereign orders the appearance of the new peer in Parliament. The House of Lords reader then reads out the summons and the warrant. The new peer swears an oath of allegiance or an affidavit and signs the protocol on which the same oath is written.

The Garter Principal King of Arms then leads the new peer and his supporters to the benches of his rank. The new peer and the supporters put on their hats, raise them, take them off again, bow to the Lord Chancellor. This process is repeated twice. After the third bow to the Lord Chancellor, the new peer, the supporters, the Garter Principal King of Arms and the Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod leave the chamber, the new peer shakes Lord Chancellor's hand.

In 1998 the House of Lords set up a committee to modernize the ceremony. The committee found: “Far from dignity, the practice of kneeling before the Lord Chancellor is embarrassing, especially because the new peer, wearing a robe, simply kneels on the floor without being able to support himself. [We] see no need to continue the act of kneeling before Lord Chancellor. ”The committee also recommended that the reading of the subpoena, which is the same for all peers, should cease while the reading of the certificate of appointment, the unique to each peer, should be continued: The committee also recommended that hats that are "non-symbolic" and removed should also be stopped. The seating order of the lords in the row of their ranks is also an outdated practice, according to the committee, the lords should instead be arranged according to their factions, the placement of new peers should be discontinued.

In the current ceremony, instead of proceeding to the Woolsack, the procession has been changed, it stops in front of the Table of the House. The reader reads out the certificate of appointment presented to him by the Garte Prinicipal King of Arms and takes the oath of allegiance or affidavit from the new peer. The new peer and his supporters bow to the Cloth of Estate, which is placed behind the Queen's throne and the Woolsack. The procession leaves the chamber, the new peer stops in front of the Woolsack and shakes Lord Chancellor's hand. After returning to the chamber, the new peer takes any seat in the ranks of his parliamentary group or, if the new peer is neutral, in the ranks of the crossbenchers .

With the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 , the presidency of the House of Lords was removed from the agenda of Lord Chancellor. This function has been exercised by the Lord Speaker since 2006 .

Ceremony for spiritual lords

The ceremony for ecclesiastical lords has always been simpler than that for secular lords and was not part of the work of the 1998 Reform Committee. The Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod and the Garter Principal King of Arms do not attend. The supporters of spiritual lords are in all cases other spiritual lords, the new member and his supporters wear spiritual clothing. The procession, with the Junior Supperter in the lead and the Senior Supporter behind the new Archbishop or Bishop, strides towards the Table of the House . The new member presents his summons, which is read out by a reader. Archbishops and bishops do not have a certificate of appointment. The reader takes the oath of loyalty, then the procession proceeds to the Woolsack, where the new member shakes the hand of the Lord Speaker. Instead of leaving the chamber, the new member and his supporters immediately take their seats on the benches of the bishops.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c House of Lords: Briefing: Membership, Diverse Membership, Becoming a Member, Party and group organization. House of Lords 2011.
  2. ^ Wagner, Anthony, Sainty, JC; Scott-Giles, CW: The Origin of the Introduction of Peers in the House of Lords . In: Archaeologia . CI, 1967, pp. 119-150.
  3. ^ House of Lords Hansard, Nov. 3, 1999, Col. 882

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