Introduction and overview
The findings of the 2021 Census on religion in England and WalesFootnote 1 revealed that less than half the populationFootnote 2 identified as ‘Christian’.Footnote 3 ‘No religion’ was the second most common response. The findings triggered fresh calls for disestablishment of the Church of England and an end to bishops in the House of Lords.Footnote 4 The United Kingdom is very rare in having explicit religious representation in the sovereign national legislature.Footnote 5
Whether the established Church should occupy a privileged place in the legislature has been considered to hinge on reform of the House of Lords. Within days of the release of the 2021 census findings, the Labour Party published A New Britain,Footnote 6 which included radical constitutional proposals to replace the House of Lords with a democratically legitimate second chamber. The authors considered that the unelected House of Lords was ‘completely indefensible’.Footnote 7
The role of the Lords Spiritual in the legislature has attracted relatively little attention from lawyers and constitutionalists,Footnote 8 commenting on the bishops’ low turn-out, infrequent attendance and occasional voting (generally against the government).Footnote 9 Nevertheless, several commentators suggest that the bishops were more likely to sway peers’ opinions in debate and private conversations rather than in voting.Footnote 10
In 2008 a critical analysis of the bishops’ contribution to the House of Lords was offered by Harlow, Doe and Cranmer.Footnote 11 I examine a number of questions which they considered in today's context.Footnote 12
In the remainder of this article, I summarise the constitutional functions of the House of Lords before examining the legal basis of the Lords Spiritual in the legislature. After considering the current cohort and organisation of Lords Spiritual, I focus on what the bishops actually do in relation to parliamentary scrutiny,Footnote 13 informing desk research with the results of conversations with a small group of current and former Lords Spiritual.Footnote 14 I conclude by looking to the future against the background of changes in religious affiliation and the evolving nature of ‘Church–State’ relations in England.
The House of Lords in the UK Constitution: a summaryFootnote 15
The Lords Spiritual (26 Archbishops and Bishops sitting on an ex officio basis) and the Lords TemporalFootnote 16 sit together and jointly constitute the House of Lords. It shares in the work of the legislature by making and shaping laws, a process protected by the rule of law.Footnote 17
The House of Lords performs three main functions. First, it scrutinises legislation,Footnote 18 serving as a ‘revising chamber’. Secondly, the House holds the executive to account for its broader policy-making and administration. Thirdly, the House acts as a national forum for debate on key issues of the day (often with an ethical content).Footnote 19 These functions, which remain substantially unchanged since they were stated by the Bryce Conference in 1918, have been subsequently recognised explicitly by the two main political parties.Footnote 20
Members of the House of Lords are constrained by established conventions of the constitution as well as the law.Footnote 21 These conventions are flexible and may be subject to change. The Lords is officially the junior player to the elected chamber in the legislative process.Footnote 22 Under the Parliament Act 1911, it can no longer veto legislation and under the Parliament Act 1949 it can only delay Bills originating in the Commons for up to one year.Footnote 23
The Lords Spiritual are able to play a full part in the functions of the House.Footnote 24 They enjoy the same rights as the Lords Temporal including the benefit of parliamentary privilege, but not the benefit of Privilege of Peerage.Footnote 25
Legal basis on which the Lords Spiritual sit in the House of Lords
The legal basis on which the Lords Spiritual sit in the House of Lords derives from a combination of custom and usage, convention, common law and statute.Footnote 26 The legal basis is a complex web of normative rules, principles, procedures, policies and practices. However, the various instruments which specify, and thereby legitimate, the legal basis for the Lords Spiritual can only serve the limited purpose of describing how the charism of episcopal leadership is exercised in this context. That is a gift of the Holy Spirit exercised through episcopal ministry, the metes and bounds of which are necessarily imprecise.Footnote 27
The historical development of the ‘right’ of the Lords Spiritual to sit in the House of Lords
Bishops have sat in Parliament at least since the 13th century. The historical development of the ‘right’ of the Lords Spiritual to sit in the House of Lords goes some way towards explaining the guaranteed institutional representation of the bishops in the LordsFootnote 28 together with their contribution to the business of the House.
Pre-Reformation
Before the Reformation, the number of bishops and other ecclesiastics in the House of Lords was much larger and more significant than it is today.Footnote 29 In the Middle Ages Temporal Peers were about 50 in number. During the reign of Edward I, 140 persons were summoned to the Parliament which met on 13 November 1295. Nine earls and 41 barons were outnumbered by two archbishops and 18 bishops as well as 67 abbots and three other clerics (including the Master of the Knights of the Temple) who were summoned to participate in affairs of state. Few of them would have regarded it as a privilege, more as an inconvenience. The object of being summoned by the Crown to attend Parliament was to obtain the assent of the Lords Spiritual, as well as the Lords Temporal, to the taxes to be imposed upon them. The summons to the Lords Spiritual was in virtue of their ecclesiastical office and status even when they were the King's tenants by barony. They attended Parliament as sapientes or witan to advise and determine matters of the realm, independently of their temporal possessions and status.Footnote 30 A writ of summons which included a praemunientes clause required not only a bishop but also all the other clergy of the diocese to attend themselves or be represented.Footnote 31
Post-Reformation
The Act of Supremacy of 1534 declared Henry VIII Supreme Head of the Church of England, thus separating England from papal authority. This, and subsequent acts,Footnote 32 gave the Crown the authority to disband monasteries in England, Wales and Ireland with the result that abbots and priors were no longer summoned to Parliament. From 1550, during the reign of Edward VI, the number of Lords Spiritual summoned to Parliament did not exceed 26. In 1642 all the bishops were removed from membership of the House of Lords by the Bishops Exclusion Act 1642,Footnote 33 and the House of Lords was subsequently abolished by the Protectorate. It was not re-established until the Restoration of Charles II in 1660, and bishops were re-admitted under the Clergy Act 1661.Footnote 34
During the long 18th century membership of the House of Lords increased to about 220, although actual attendance was much smaller. The votes of the Lords Spiritual, which had increased to 24, were important especially if there were divisions. Nomination as a bishop was largely decided by the part he was expected to play in the House of Lords. It became a prize of patronage exercised by successive governments. Indeed, before becoming Bishop of London in 1713, the Bishop of Bristol, John Robinson held ministerial office as Lord Privy Seal in 1711.Footnote 35 Even if they were not members of the government, many bishops were appointed for their political services.Footnote 36
By the 19th century, the bishops had broken away from the Whigs and usually voted with the Conservatives.Footnote 37 They often continued to speak in an overtly partisan way and governments relied upon them in order to maintain their strength in Parliament.Footnote 38 The Bishops’ support for the government in debates over the Great Reform Bill, for example, was overwhelmingly against reform. This prompted the House of Commons to propose the removal of the bishops from the Lords. Although the Commons failed, the Bishopric of Manchester Act 1847 capped the number of bishops in Parliament at 26, which remains the case to this day.Footnote 39
The two Archbishops and the Church of England's three most senior bishops, of London, Durham and Winchester, as a matter of custom, are effectively guaranteed a seat in the Lords virtute officii. Footnote 40
Like other Lords Spiritual, the Archbishop of Canterbury is a Lord of Parliament.Footnote 41 He occupies a space in the corner seat immediately above the gangway between the bishops’ benches and the government benches.Footnote 42 The Archbishop of York sits next to him on ‘the same form and side’.Footnote 43 The bishops sit on the government side of the House on the two front benches on the right of and nearest the ThroneFootnote 44 from which they speak.Footnote 45
Before 2015 when a vacancy arose in one of the 21 of the 26 places not reserved, the next most senior bishop replaced them. When a vacancy arises among the Lords Spiritual by the avoidance of the sees of Canterbury, York, London, Durham and Winchester, the vacancy is filled by the issue of a writ of summons to the bishop who is appointed to the vacant see. Prior to the enactment of the Lords Spiritual (Women) Act 2015, if the vacancy was caused by the avoidance of any other see, a writ of summons was issued to the senior English diocesan bishop who was not already a Lord of Parliament.
Since the Lords Spiritual (Women) Act 2015Footnote 46 if there is at least one eligible bishop who is a woman, the vacancy is to be filled by the most senior eligible bishop who is a woman.Footnote 47 These arrangements are time-limited for 10 years until 2025.Footnote 48
A Lord Spiritual retains his or her seat in the House of Lords as long as they retain their bishopric. Unlike any other members, they are required to retire at the age of 70.Footnote 49 Some Lords Spiritual on retirement are granted a Life PeerageFootnote 50 and are entitled to sit as Peers in their own right (and are re-introduced as such).
The ancient ‘right’ of the Lords Spiritual who attend on Parliament,Footnote 51 their appointmentFootnote 52 having been made by the Monarch as Supreme Governor of the Church of England, on the ‘advice’ of the Prime Minister,Footnote 53 rests on a mixture of ancient usage and statute.Footnote 54
After a bishop has done homageFootnote 55 he is qualified to receive a writ of summons to the House of Lords. An Archbishop on appointment and a bishop who has become entitled to sit, applies for a writ of summons to the Lord Chancellor.Footnote 56 Members of the House may not take their seat until they have obtained the writ.Footnote 57
The wording of the writ of summons to a bishop is slightly different from that addressed to a peer.Footnote 58 What is common is the purpose for which the Parliament has been called; that is, to consider affairs concerning the state of the kingdom and for the need of the recipient to be personally present when Parliament is sitting, and to ‘treat and give your counsel’. This formally constitutes the Crown's role description for a Lord Spiritual. The writ of summons is read aloud when the new bishop is introduced to the House.Footnote 59
Current complement and organisation of the Lords Spiritual
How does sitting in the House of Lords fit with an understanding of episcopal ministry and the appointment of bishops today? Canon C18 provides only some help. This provides that the role of a bishop is ‘chief pastor’ of all within his diocese. The nature of the office is ‘to teach and to uphold sound and wholesome doctrine, and to banish and drive away all erroneous and strange opinions’. A bishop is also expected to ‘maintain quietness, love and peace among all men’.Footnote 60
On appointment a diocesan bishop becomes a national figure who might be expected to demonstrate an interest in public affairs. Whether the experience and skills which make for an effective member of the legislature feature among the criteria for selection of diocesan bishops is a moot point. When the Crown Nominations Committee is considering candidates for a bishopric they have embarked on a process that could take the successful candidate to a seat in the House of Lords. It is effectively a process in which there is now little to no state involvement.Footnote 61
The Church of England describes the role of the Lords Spiritual on its website,Footnote 62 which is to say prayers before the beginning of the proceedings of the HouseFootnote 63 and take part in all the business of the House.Footnote 64 It sees the presence of its bishops there as:Footnote 65
[A]n extension of their general vocation as bishops to preach God's word and to lead people in prayer. Bishops provide an important independent voice and spiritual insight to the work of the House and, while they make no claims to direct representation, they seek to be a voice for all people of faith, not just Christians. Their presence reflects our enduring constitutional arrangement, with an established Church of England and its Supreme Governor as Monarch and Head of State.
A significant effect of the statutory cap on the size of the Lords Spiritual is that the bishops can only be removed from the HouseFootnote 66 by primary legislation.Footnote 67 The size of the rest of the House is unrestricted (at the time of writing it was 787).Footnote 68 With a significant increase in the number of appointments in recent years, there have been fresh calls to reduce numbers.Footnote 69
The 26 Lords Spiritual constitute only 3% of the total membership of the House. So it might be thought their role is not very prominent or controversial. However, as at 30 December 2023, with 270 Members, the governing party no longer has a majority. With 175 members, the Official Opposition has slightly fewer members than the Crossbenchers (184). Although numerically small, the Lords Spiritual do not constitute an insignificant group on matters which are taken to a vote. However, the influence of the bishops in practice is more likely to be felt from speaking in debate as well as operating ‘behind the scenes’,Footnote 70 rather than winning votes.
The bishops rarely attend the House in large numbers or as a phalanx. The five most senior Lords Spiritual (that is the ex officio bishops) do not usually serve on the ‘duty bishop’ rota, whilst the other 21 bishops are expected to make themselves available for roughly two weeks a year.Footnote 71
The Lords Spiritual are independent members of the House. They do not follow a party line or whip. They vote according to conscience, sometimes in different lobbies on the same issue. Nevertheless, their work is subject to a degree of co-ordination by the Convenor of the Lords Spiritual.Footnote 72 The Convenor acts as the main point of contact for the bishops in the Lords and with leaders of other groups in the House through the ‘usual channels’.Footnote 73
It was clear from my consultation with them that in pursuit of their individual interests, the bishops take care to consult with colleagues and with other faith groups (although the latter will not be formally represented in the House).
The Lords Spiritual do not receive any financial assistance to meet the cost of their parliamentary business;Footnote 74 but Lords Spiritual (like other peers) are entitled to claim an allowance to cover certain expenses associated with attending the House, and they do benefit from support from the Church of England's Parliamentary Unit. This serves the National Church Institutions (NCIs) by maintaining links with parliamentarians and helping the NCIs to engage more effectively with Parliament and government.
Following the Blair Lords’ reforms,Footnote 75 the Parliamentary Unit was established in 2008Footnote 76 on the initiative of the Bishop of London who identified a need for greater professionalism in the Church of England's handling of its relations with government and parliament.Footnote 77 Based in Westminster, the unit supports the Lords Spiritual as well as the Church of England and the Second Church Estates Commissioner in their relations with Whitehall and Westminster.Footnote 78 It provides policy research, advises on parliamentary procedure, drafts speeches, consults colleagues in the NCIsFootnote 79 and liaises with the House authorities as well as the offices of other faith leaders. The Unit will also work closely with the Convenor of the Lords Spiritual and the House authorities. It remains in touch with retired bishops in the Lords, although they benefit from support provided to the crossbench peers.Footnote 80
The unit's staff meet with the Lords Spiritual at quarterly meetings with a focus on looking ahead over the coming six months. The practice has evolved of bishops leading on issues of public policy in three different ways. First, there is the nationally designated lead for an issue or policy area (such as health, education, prisons, environment). These may not be bishops sitting in the Lords. Secondly, there is a portfolio lead for a policy area among the Lords Spiritual, as agreed between the bishops. Where a Lord Spiritual is a national lead they will usually take the lead among the Lords Spiritual as well. Thirdly, a bishop may take an ad hoc ‘lead’ on an issue because of a local or emerging interest, rather than a pre-planned or established lead role (for example the Bishop of St Albans on gambling reform).Footnote 81
The bishops decide their level of parliamentary activity and support requirements themselves. Most engage with the staff of the Parliamentary Unit, but a growing number also benefit from personal parliamentary advisers to assist them instead of relying, as bishops used to, on their chaplains or personal assistants.Footnote 82
The Parliamentary Unit may occasionally support Lords Spiritual who sit on select committees of the House of Lords.Footnote 83
Parliamentary scrutiny
Parliamentary scrutiny of the executive is carried out by both Houses of Parliament. The House of Lords discharges its scrutiny role in different ways.Footnote 84 It is often assumed that its role as a ‘revising chamber’ has been long established but it has not always been so.Footnote 85 In the early part of the 20th century, the House was ‘a revising chamber notable for undertaking almost no revision’.Footnote 86 More recently the Lords’ constitutional role of revision has come into sharper focus, amid concern about Parliament's ability to meet public expectations about its core functions.Footnote 87 Two key matters the Lords look for in legislative scrutiny are the quality of legislation and the increasing tendency of ministers to reserve power unto themselves, by secondary legislation without proper scrutiny.Footnote 88
The pressures on Parliament have been especially heavy recently.Footnote 89 Legislation has surged from Brexit and the COVID-19 pandemic, and the sheer day-to-day pressure on government to ‘deliver’. Concerns focus on the increasing complexity of legislation and a decline in its clarity, coherence and accessibility as well as the substantive content of law, its architecture and language, and the links between these elements.Footnote 90 The pandemic in particular exposed and exacerbated weaknesses in the legislative process. Measures were often introduced to Parliament at breakneck speed, raising scrutiny and rule of law concerns requiring the law-making powers of government to be controlled by Parliament. This required timely, properly prepared, evidence-based information, impact assessment and analysis.Footnote 91
The contribution of the Lords Spiritual to parliamentary scrutiny
What contribution do the Lords Spiritual make to the scrutiny of legislation and policy? I examined the activity of the Lords Spiritual who were entitled to sit in August 2022, covering a 12-month period from July 2021 to July 2022. I reviewed the Official Reports Footnote 92 of proceedings to which the bishops contributed. This focused mainly on legislation before the House straddling two parliamentary sessions, the first beginning in May 2021, the second in May 2022.Footnote 93 The House considered a wide range of measures over this period.Footnote 94 The bishops’ contributions are recorded in the daily Official Report and broadcast on the Parliamentlive channel.Footnote 95 What will not have been visible are the meetings with Government Ministers and officials to whom, like other parliamentarians and organised groups, the Lords Spiritual have access. Four Government Bills featured prominently: Nationality and Borders,Footnote 96 Schools,Footnote 97 Health and Social Care,Footnote 98 and Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts.Footnote 99
The bishops also contributed to debates on several Private Member's BillsFootnote 100 concerning Age Assurance (Minimum Standards),Footnote 101 Assisted Dying, Climate and Ecology, Coroners (Determination of Suicide),Footnote 102 Education Assemblies,Footnote 103 Front-Loaded Child Benefit, Gambling, Organ Tourism and Cadavers Display, Refugees (Family Reunion), Status of Workers, and Universal Credit (Removal of Two Child Limit).Footnote 104
Occasionally the Lords Spiritual contribute to debates on secondary legislation (regulations made under statutory powers granted in primary legislation).Footnote 105 However, the powers of the Lords in practice are very limited as they cannot amend the regulations, only express their ‘regret’.
Several regulations concerned the bishops during the relevant period including the Abortion (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2022,Footnote 106 Burundi (Sanctions Regulations),Footnote 107 the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) (Amendment) (Coronavirus) (No. 2) Regulations 2021,Footnote 108 the Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions (Self-Isolation) (England) (Amendment) (No. 6) Regulations,Footnote 109 and the Immigration and Nationality (Fees) Amendment Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/ 581).Footnote 110
The Lords Spiritual also initiated or contributed to Lords’ debates which, like tabling Parliamentary Questions, can elevate the significance of concern and may influence opinion in government and communities beyond Westminster. Debates during the relevant period covered such matters as a Bill of Rights,Footnote 111 standards of behaviour and honesty in public life,Footnote 112 the Late Queen's Platinum Jubilee,Footnote 113 net-zero carbon emissions,Footnote 114 schools: extremism and intolerance,Footnote 115 and the need to change behaviourFootnote 116 and freedom of speech.Footnote 117
How do the Lords Spiritual exercise their scrutiny powers in practice?
When they do participate in legislative debates,Footnote 118 particularly during committee and report stages, the bishops sometimes touch on the ‘constitutionality’ of legislation and rule of law concerns of the kind which Lord Bingham captured in The Rule of Law. Footnote 119 In this context the bishops can also draw on reports of the Lords Constitution Committee, the Joint Statutory Instruments Scrutiny Committee, the Delegated Powers and Regulatory Reform Committee, and the Joint Committee on Human Rights Committee,Footnote 120 as well as their own professional and personal experience.
A selection of the bishops’ interventions during the relevant period concerned such matters as the length and complexity of legislative measures; vagueness of drafting and lack of clarity;Footnote 121 insufficient transparency of process;Footnote 122 reassurance that consultation would be undertaken;Footnote 123 timing and tabling of government amendments or provision of regulatory impact assessments and supporting information;Footnote 124 unforeseen and unintended consequences of legislation;Footnote 125 imposition of unreasonable costs and burdens or burdens having disproportionate effects on certain individuals or groups (invariably vulnerable people);Footnote 126 use of ‘Henry VIII’ and ouster clauses;Footnote 127 using ultra vires powers;Footnote 128 using secondary legislation (with lower scrutiny thresholds) when primary legislation was needed;Footnote 129 ‘constitutionality’ and related rule of law concerns;Footnote 130 inappropriate use of legislative resources;Footnote 131 functionally inadequate provision of necessary protections;Footnote 132 low likelihood of getting a process right first time and in a timely manner;Footnote 133 inappropriate reliance by a Minister on unscrutinised guidance to be issued at a later stage;Footnote 134 and siphoning off funds raised for one purpose and using them for a different purpose.Footnote 135
Effectiveness of scrutiny?
During the 12-month period under review, several of the Lords Spiritual played a full and active part in scrutiny,Footnote 136 and a few of them (including the Bishop of St Albans and the Bishop of Durham) were notably active. To what effect?
Assessing the effectiveness of legislative scrutiny is not easy.Footnote 137 From a narrow and politically simple interpretation, effective scrutiny might be achieved by changing the wording of a bill; but testing whether a bill would have the intended policy effect could constitute effective scrutiny without changes being made to the text. Effectiveness of scrutiny is multi-faceted. Some of the dimensions of effectiveness are subtle and hidden, and by their very nature difficult to measure.Footnote 138
In evidence to the Lords Committee on the Constitution, Daniel Gover observed: Footnote 139
[S]crutiny is valuable for its own sake. It means that government rationales are on the public record, and that others are aware of what the Government are arguing and can feed into the process. It delivers accountability. So Parliament is effective, but measuring that is very difficult.
To judge from the evidence submitted to this committee there were more concerns about the nature and quality of scrutiny in the House of Commons than in the Lords.Footnote 140 Nevertheless, even among those who gave evidence from the Lords thought the process of scrutiny had room for improvement.Footnote 141
From studying the Official Report the results of the bishops’ scrutiny activity reveal a relatively modest contribution to the work of the revising chamber. A familiar pattern can be discerned. During the second reading debate of a Bill to consider its general principles, a bishop may join others in indicating they will give more detailed attention during ‘line by line’ scrutiny in committee and possibly thereafter. During committee (which in the Lords is taken on the floor of the HouseFootnote 142 and not limit-timed), a bishop may table his or her own amendment which is designed to probe the Government's intention or possibly to clarify policy. The bishop may lend his name in support of another's amendment to provide an opportunity for debate to elicit a suitable response. Either way the amendment is invariably ‘not moved’ or ‘withdrawn’. However, that need not represent an unsuccessful outcome.
First, it could demonstrate the bishop reserving his or her fire power.Footnote 143 Secondly, the bishop may have been sufficiently reassured by the minister not to proceedFootnote 144 or been given a helpful interpretation of the text.Footnote 145 Thirdly, the bishop may decide to reflect on the debate and the potential for making headway with a related amendment which could be moved at a later stage. Alternatively, the minister may decide to reconsider the Government's policy. Providing a forum for second thoughts is a classic function of a revising chamber.Footnote 146
In these ways, scrutiny does take place, as several of the examples of the bishops’ contributions cited above demonstrate.Footnote 147 Only occasionally will a bishop decide to test the opinion of the House and move an amendment to a division. As with Lords’ amendments to Government Bills generally, this may well be reversed by the Commons at a later stage.
Legislative change in the Lords is achieved more often than not through negotiation rather than by defeat. While defeats can be high profile, negotiated outcomes are more common but rarely noticed outside the chamber and the Government may table its own amendments as a result. This supports academic commentators’ views that the main impact of legislatures comes not through public confrontation but ‘anticipated reactions’.Footnote 148
Views from the bishops’ bench
A number of informal conversations of a semi-structured nature were undertakenFootnote 149 to inform my desk research. These took place on the understanding that particular comments would be anonymised. It must be stressed this represented a small sample of the Lords Spiritual, as appears in an Appendix to this article.
The conversations showed that the Lords Spiritual continue to see their role as speaking for people of faith in their dioceses. They do not speak for the Church of England.Footnote 150 They participate in debates, with a shared understanding that they do so as independent members in the Burkean sense. They contribute when they think they have something to say based on their local, personal or professional knowledge and experience.
Some see themselves having a ‘representative’ role,Footnote 151 ‘giving a voice to the voiceless’ and the marginalised. They contribute where they think they can offer a moral or faith (not a denominational) perspective. They believe that members of other faiths are, in general, content for the bishops to speak on their behalf on ‘common good’ and ethical matters. They are not encountering resistance to this from other faiths or their leaders. They believe that among sections of the public there is an expectation that bishops will speak upFootnote 152 on faith matters in the legislature.
The bishops have become better organised and more co-ordinated than in the past. Since 2008 the Parliamentary Unit has added good public affairs practice to the bishops’ contributions. The bishops are nevertheless reluctant to be seen as more ‘professionalised’. They appear reticent about attracting attention in the Lords. They are less concerned about winning votes than in influencing debate. They observe a policy of restraint in a chamber which recognises the primacy of the Commons. They recognise the need for revision and scrutiny to which they are able and do make their own contribution, from a faith perspective.Footnote 153
The bishops see their dioceses having first priority for their attention. Their attendance in the House is sometimes sporadic and colleagues may have to step in at short notice. They have a great many claims on their time and are conscious that time spent at Westminster may be perceived as being at the expense of attending to the diocese, and that their parliamentary role may not always be sufficiently understood.
Fit for the future?
The case for continuing religious representation in Parliament is based on a constitutional tradition that the Christian religion is represented in the legislatureFootnote 154 and secondly that with the greater plurality of religious life, representation should be broadened.Footnote 155 Against that it may be questioned whether there is sufficient clarity or correspondence of view about the nature of religious representation or indeed about whether religious representatives bring unique authority to the consideration of moral issues.Footnote 156
Whether there are sufficiently compelling reasons for continued religious representation in a reformed second chamber and, if so, on what terms, is a matter for the state, not the Church. It will be contested and it will turn on the exercise of political judgment.
Labour's proposals follow a long line of previous attempts to approach reform of the House of Lords.Footnote 157 These failed to gain support just as the Conservative–Liberal Democrat Coalition attempt at reform did in 2012; but to maintain a tradition of giving a uniquely privileged position to one Christian denomination in the sovereign democratic legislature, which is restricted to England, and is increasingly unrepresentative of people of other faiths (and increasingly of no faith), appears to be at risk of violating the principle of religious freedom and the belief that all religious faiths and traditions should be equal before the law.Footnote 158
The future of the Lords Spiritual depends on the future of the House of Lords. In a bicameral legislature, the constitutional functions of the second chamber should be determined by what best serves Parliament and the nation. That could be by continuing to exercise scrutiny and revising powers, by holding the executive to account within agreed constitutional conventions and by acting as a forum for debate on key issues of the day.
With recent proposals for constitutional change involving potentially radical reform of the House of Lords and significant changes in religious affiliation and practice,Footnote 159 the Church of England faces a strategic opportunity.
Our constitutional settlement, which is founded on the historic and symbolic link between Church and state, assumes that faith does have a role to play in our polity. There should continue to be a role for the established Church in Parliament.Footnote 160 In public discourse it is important to have voices, including voices of communities of faith that are neither determined by party politics nor endorsing a majoritarian view of democracy, which can contribute to the flourishing of civil society.
A broadening of religious representation in a reformed House of Lords, if necessary accompanied by a reduction in the number of Lords Spiritual to facilitate this, might be beneficial.Footnote 161 It might provide a suitable opportunity for the established Church to consider whether the current arrangements for representation in the legislatureFootnote 162 are fit for the future so that the religious dimension of our constitution can contribute even more effectively to the enhancement of the rule of law, parliamentary supremacy and fundamental freedoms, and thereby provide a gateway to greater inclusion, diversity and social cohesion in our society.
APPENDIX
Views from the Bishops’ Bench – a selection
Question 1: What do the Bishops see as their role as Lords Spiritual?
Bishop A
‘To nudge things along.’
‘We need more focus when and where there needs to be change for the common good.’
‘We are the most democratic part of the House of Lords.’
Bishop B
‘We are not whipped. I tend to contribute in debate or questions rather than to vote. We can talk locally into a situation. Our contributions reflect different perspectives based on location, position and confessional beliefs. We act as guardians of faith interests.’
‘The presence of bishops in the House of Lords demonstrates a very important working of our constitution. You should look at our writ of summons from the Crown Office to Parliament “in the great troubles of these times”, which actually refers to all time. We are here to support the vision of our constitution, to support the wider structure of which we are a part.’
Bishop C
‘It is not our role to represent the Church of England in the House of Lords or our view of Christianity, but of faith and what it is to be part of humanity. The bishops can speak of the whole life of this country in a way that no other member of the House or group of peers can. They can bring into the arena of legislation a perspective of the most vulnerable in society.’
‘The Lords Spiritual are independent. Of course the Archbishops might indicate to you what they are minded to say on an issue or when they are thinking of intervening. It is important for the bishops to exercise some restraint in debate. Not too many bishops should be seen to be “piling in”. One can exercise influence outside the voting lobbies.’
‘Saying prayers at the start of proceedings is very important. After the House resumed sitting in person following the easing of the Covid restrictions a peer came up to me and said that the prayers had been the first act of public worship that he had attended in two years.’
Bishop D
‘We try to speak truth to power. We do try.’
‘I hold to the biblical view that government is a tragedy. But it is necessary because the state will be destroyed by philistines. It is right that Christianity stands alongside society which makes laws for itself. It is difficult, if not too obviously indulgent, to say that society does not want it anymore.’
‘Speaking in a debate [in the House of Lords] can have a symbolic function, contributing to the mysteries that decorate our constitution.’
Bishop E
‘To draw on the riches of the Christian faith and apply them to current issues before the House of Lords. Secondly, to bring to the attention of the House the wider concerns of the area within which my diocese was situated.’
Bishop F
‘I do think it is significant that there are Bishops in the House of Lords. We do not have a constituency. We have contact with “real people”; our dioceses cover a wider geographical area than parliamentary constituencies.’
‘As a Lord Spiritual I see my function like that of a Lord Temporal, as being around scrutiny. I also contribute what I understand to be the teaching of Jesus Christ and the message of the Gospel. As a Lord Spiritual I also have a pastoral function, in relation to Peers as well as to the staff of the House. It is a privilege to be here.’
‘We don't enter into the politics of legislation and policy and we don't want our presence to overpower the benches. So we try not to have too many bishops sitting on the episcopal benches at any one time. We tried not to have too many bishops giving tributes about the late Queen when so many others wanted to speak about her.’
‘We speak from “within a faith framework”. We do talk with other faith group leaders.’
‘We speak with the Lords Temporal about amendments. They often help us with the drafting of amendments. We have access to the resources of the House including the Peers’ Library.’
‘There is no “Church of England line” on any issue to which the Bishops even feel obliged to speak. What we can, and do, say is that the Church of England has said this or stated that; or it has published a report with these recommendations or came to these conclusions.’
Bishop G
‘We bring faith into the public square; we are careful to speak about faith as a whole, not just the position of the Established Church.’
‘I think parliamentary scrutiny is terribly important. To begin with, following my arrival in 2015, we spent so much time on Brexit and related legislation. Now there is more legislative material for us to scrutinise.’
Question 2: What do the public expect of Bishops in the Lords?
Bishop A
‘To articulate to government what they are hearing at grass roots level in their parishes. The trouble with the government is that they don't know what's going on. As a bishop I felt it was important to contribute my own experience of what I was hearing – to give a voice to the voiceless.’
Bishop B
‘We act as guardians of faith interests.’
Bishop C
‘Other faiths looked to me to represent them. They saw the Church of England bishop as “their bishop”. The Roman Catholics did not see it quite like that but the Sikhs and Hindus did.’
Bishop D
‘The presence of the bishops [in the House of Lords] affects perceptions of the state. Government is answerable to a higher authority.’
Bishop E
‘It's nonsense to speak of the bishops providing the moral conscience of the House of Lords. But people here in the Lords and outside do look to the bishops to provide that conscience. Yet all of us should do that.’
‘The Church of England bishops do act as a religious voice for England. The late Queen's Platinum Jubilee address to the House of Bishops at Lambeth Palace in 2012 spoke eloquently about the role of the Church of England to allow space for other religious faiths to be heard.’
Bishop G
‘I see myself speaking for people of faith, lots of different faiths, and people of no faith. The Humanists are taking an interest in marriage law reform. This is where people of faith and no faith have different point of view and expect the bishops to have something to say.’
‘People want to hear from a bishop. People of other faiths look to the bishops to speak on their behalf. They are happy for them to do so in my experience.’
Question 3: What criteria do you use when evaluating legislative change?
Bishop A
‘We focus on moral questions, we want to ask moral questions, questions about integrity, faith and communities. The public narrative is dominated by homo economicus.’
Bishop B
‘When I speak in debate I often draw on the historical background, to give a historical perspective on current issues.’
‘We comment on standards in public life, on the Nolan principles.’
‘On matters of general debate the criterion I used was “Is there something I can personally contribute to this debate?”’
Bishop C
‘It is important not to over-use one's standing as a bishop in the Lords. We exercise restraint. So generally you would only get one bishop speaking to an issue or question.’
‘With line by line scrutiny of legislation, I would focus on trying to improve the quality of drafting, the intelligibility of legislation. I think this is one of the most important roles.’
Bishop E
‘The application of Christian faith to matters of public policy. I bring a theological understanding, an ethical perspective and consider the rationale for the policy issue. I bring my judgment to bear.’
Bishop F
‘I try to take a broad view to include, where appropriate, issues around health (including mental health), health inequality, domestic abuse, women's issues, migrants, the living wage, bereavement.’
‘Sometimes we become subject matter experts for example in relation to fire safety following the Grenfell Tower tragedy and the introduction of building safety legislation.’
‘At times there are great moments sitting in the House of Lords when the Bishops can “reach across issues” for example in my case to speak about health issues and to draw on my experience of life in London.’
‘As Bishops we can speak about values, which is not to say that others who sit in the Lords cannot or do not speak about values.’
Bishop G
‘I bring a woman's perspective to bear, such as on domestic violence and girls’ education.”
Question 4: What impact have the women bishops made in the House of Lords?
Bishop A
‘It must have been very tough for the first woman Lord Spiritual. I had been a diocesan bishop for 12 years before I was introduced here but she became a diocesan bishop straight after being an archdeacon and five weeks later was sitting in the House of Lords.’
‘There have been some mutterings from the Lords Temporal: where are the women bishops? We don't make a habit of sitting in any great number on the same occasion, usually just a couple of bishops or so.’
‘The women bishops have brought huge richness to the proceedings of the House. They have a different way of talking about things and sharing ideas. They encourage people. Men are different, they don't comment on each other's contributions.’
Bishop D
‘Identity and individuality are very different from equality. The women bishops have been no different to the men. They are making as good as any episcopal voices in the Lords in the post-War period. They are very effective.’
Question 5: Is there a theological take to be given by the bishops?
Bishop A
‘I think what we are often trying to do is to identify common ground issues and concerns, and to draw on Catholic social teaching.’
‘I also think that apart from a theological perspective, it is useful to give a historical perspective, to see what we have been through before, how we responded earlier.’
Bishop F
‘I contribute what I understand to be the teaching of Jesus Christ and the message of the Gospel.’
Bishop G
‘I ask myself where does faith engage with this particular policy issue?’
Question 6: What is the future of the bishops in the House of Lords?
Bishop A
‘I think it is going to be more difficult to resist calls for change in the current arrangements in the future.’
‘On the future, we have to be careful. We have to play a careful hand. We cannot be or be seen to be a political party. We are not professional politicians. We do not say, and we should not say, that we are trying to professionalise ourselves.’
‘Our future has to be seen in the context of proposals, over the years, for the reform of the House of Lords, of its future generally. There is a certain amount of unfinished business.’
‘We do have a contribution to make. The House of Lords is a revising chamber. Much of the legislation we have to consider is rushed through the Commons and has not been thought through sufficiently. We are not subject to the same time pressures. Our timetable is not set by the Government's business managers so we can examine legislation and policy with greater care and attention.’
Bishop B
‘When one looks back on the Supreme Court's consideration of the Government's attempt unlawfully to advise the Monarch to prorogue Parliament in the context of Brexit one wonders how long the constitutional stability will hold. But recent events following the death of the Queen have demonstrated the stability of the Monarchy.’
Bishop C
‘Perhaps no change is an option to be considered. Some reduction in the number of bishops might be sought. If there are fewer bishops there they will have to spend more time at Westminster. Sees which are some distance from the House, like Carlisle, Newcastle or Truro, could be significantly disadvantaged. What about episcopal representation in regional assemblies? But what would they do? Become talking shops?’
Bishop D
‘Removal of the bishops from the Lords would damage the functionally atheist state if the mask was ripped off. The presence of the bishops affects perceptions of the state. Government is answerable to a higher authority.’
‘Margaret Thatcher didn't like the Archbishop of Canterbury's sermon at the Service of Thanksgiving after the recapture of the Falklands any more than she didn't like the Faith in the City report. The bishops then were visible and un-ignorable. The trouble is if the bishops were taken away from the Lords they would be ignored. They would suffer the same fate as the Methodists.’
‘It depends on the future of the House of Lords. The situation at the moment is unsustainable. There are so many peers, too many. Conservative governments have not helped by putting up so many ex-MPs. I am personally in favour of the recent proposals put forward by the group chaired by Gordon Brown [A New Britain]. The reduction or removal of the bishops in the House of Lords would not have an impact on the establishment of the Church of England and it is a mistake to think otherwise. Consider the position in Scotland.’
Bishop E
‘I am in favour of a reduction in the number of Church of England Bishops and broadening of the base of faith representation in principle but I think it will be very difficult to achieve in practice. How would Muslims or Hindus, for example, be able to decide who should represent them in the absence of a hierarchical structure?’
Bishop F
‘I can see that the position about the bishops sitting in the House of Lords will change but it will take time. There is the potential for reform but I don't see it as a big issue at this time.’
Bishop G
‘The House of Lords does need reforming. I would be happy to see other faiths represented here. Will it happen in the next 10 years? I don't think so. In the next 20 years? Possibly. The issue is deeply embedded in our constitutional fabric. I don't see it as a big issue at the moment.’
Acknowledgements
I am very grateful to Professor Norman Doe (Director, Centre for Law and Religion, Cardiff University) for encouraging me to pursue this subject which was undertaken in 2022 in fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Laws (Canon Law), Cardiff University. I am also indebted to many others including Sir David Beamish (former Clerk of the Parliaments), the Rev'd Canon Dr Malcolm Brown (Director, Church of England Mission and Public Life Division), the Rt Hon Baroness Butler-Sloss (Chairman of the Ecclesiastical Committee and crossbench peer), Richard Chaplin (Head of Parliamentary Affairs, Church of England), The Rt Rev'd Richard Chartres (crossbench peer and former Bishop of London), the Rt Rev'd Christine Hardman (former Bishop of Newcastle), the Lord Harries of Pentregarth (crossbench peer and former Bishop of Oxford), the late Lord Judge (former Convenor of the crossbench peers and former Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales), Lord Lisvane (crossbench peer and former Clerk of the House of Commons), the Rt Rev'd Dame Sarah Mullally (Bishop of London), the Rt Rev'd Dr Alan Smith, Bishop of St Albans (Convenor of the Lords Spiritual), the Rt Rev'd Christopher Chessun, Bishop of Southwark, Simon Stanley (Deputy Head of Parliamentary Affairs, Church of England) and the Rt Rev'd Rachel Treweek (Bishop of Gloucester). I am also very grateful to the staff of the British Library as well as the Inner and Middle Temple libraries, and to the House of Lords External Communication Office.
