The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house,the House of Commons,it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London,England. One of the oldest institutions in the world,its origins lie in the early 11th century and the emergence of bicameralism in the 13th century.
Peerages in the United Kingdom form a legal system comprising both hereditary and lifetime titles,composed of various ranks,and within the framework of the Constitution of the United Kingdom form a constituent part of the legislative process and the British honours system. The British monarch is considered the fount of honour and is notionally the only person who can grant peerages,though there are many conventions about how this power is used,especially at the request of the British government. The term peerage can be used both collectively to refer to the entire body of titled nobility,and individually to refer to a specific title. British peerage title holders are termed peers of the Realm.
The Peerage Act 1963 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that permits women peeresses and all Scottish hereditary peers to sit in the House of Lords and allows newly inherited hereditary peerages to be disclaimed.
The House of Lords Act 1999 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed the House of Lords,one of the chambers of Parliament. The Act was given Royal Assent on 11 November 1999. For centuries,the House of Lords had included several hundred members who inherited their seats;the Act removed such a right. However,as part of a compromise,the Act did permit ninety-two hereditary peers to remain in the House. Another ten were created life peers to enable them to remain in the House.
Robert Michael James Gascoyne-Cecil,7th Marquess of Salisbury,Baron Gascoyne-Cecil,is a British Conservative politician. From 1979 to 1987 he represented South Dorset in the House of Commons,and in the 1990s he was Leader of the House of Lords under his courtesy title of Viscount Cranborne. Lord Salisbury lives in one of England's largest historic houses,the 17th-century Hatfield House in Hertfordshire,and currently serves as Chancellor of the University of Hertfordshire.
In the United Kingdom,life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited,in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the Dukedom of Edinburgh awarded for life to Prince Edward in 2023,all life peerages conferred since 2009 have been created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 with the rank of baron and entitle their holders to sit and vote in the House of Lords,presuming they meet qualifications such as age and citizenship. The legitimate children of a life peer appointed under the Life Peerages Act 1958 are entitled to style themselves with the prefix "The Honourable",although they cannot inherit the peerage itself. Prior to 2009,life peers of baronial rank could also be so created under the Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876 for senior judges.
The Life Peerages Act 1958 established the modern standards for the creation of life peers by the Sovereign of the United Kingdom.
The Lords Temporal are secular members of the House of Lords,the upper house of the British Parliament. These can be either life peers or hereditary peers,although the hereditary right to sit in the House of Lords was abolished for all but ninety-two peers during the 1999 reform of the House of Lords. The term is used to differentiate these members from the Lords Spiritual,who sit in the House as a consequence of being bishops in the Church of England.
Edward Timothy Razzall,Baron Razzall,,is a British Liberal Democrat politician and parliamentarian.
David Arthur Russell Howell,Baron Howell of Guildford,is a British Conservative Party politician,journalist,and economic consultant. Having been successively Secretary of State for Energy and then for Transport under Margaret Thatcher,Howell has more recently been a Minister of State in the Foreign Office from the election in 2010 until the reshuffle of 2012. He has served as Chair of the House of Lords International Relations Committee since May 2016. Along with William Hague,Sir George Young and Kenneth Clarke,he is one of the few Cabinet ministers from the 1979–97 governments who continued to hold high office in the party,being its deputy leader in the House of Lords until 2010. His daughter,Frances,was married to the former Chancellor of the Exchequer,George Osborne.
Amirali Alibhai Bhatia,Baron Bhatia,was a British businessman and life peer.
Jane Bonham Carter,Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury is a British Liberal Democrat politician,and member of the House of Lords.
Rodney Elton,2nd Baron Elton,was a British Conservative politician and member of the House of Lords.
Jennifer Jane Forwood,11th Baroness Arlington,is the daughter of General Sir John Nelson and Lady Margaret Jane Fitzroy,sister of the 9th Duke of Grafton.
Julian Pascoe Francis St Leger Grenfell,3rd Baron Grenfell,Baron Grenfell of Kilvey,is a Labour hereditary peer,life peer,and former member of the House of Lords known for his strong Europhile views.
The 1997 Prime Minister's Resignation Honours were officially announced in two supplements to The London Gazette of 1 August 1997 and marked the May 1997 resignation of the Prime Minister,John Major.
Rupert Bertram Mitford,6th Baron Redesdale,Baron Mitford,is a British hereditary peer,Liberal Democrat politician and member of the prominent Mitford family.
Geoffrey Robert James Borwick,5th Baron Borwick,is a British businessman,hereditary peer and member of the House of Lords.
By-elections to the House of Lords occur when vacancies arise among seats assigned to hereditary peers due to death,resignation,or disqualification. Candidates for these by-elections are limited to holders of hereditary peerages,and their electorates are made up of sitting Lords;in most cases the electorate are those sitting hereditary peers of the same party affiliation as the departed peer.
