Consider the Political Issues about the Role and Composition of a Second Chamber.

... Consider the Political Issues about the Role and Composition of a Second Chamber Edward Cohen The early history of the Lords is important to see how this body has developed into what it it is to this present day. Even from 1500 the House of Lords had equal status to the House of Commons, its members were few in number and were not elected. You could gain the title from inheriting peerage to a peer or nominated peer by the monarch. As early as the sixteenth century it was the elected House of Commons that took the initiative against the monarch in matters of policy, with the Lords being a more conservative body, supporting the monarch. This role lasted well into the nineteenth century. The turning point was in the nineteenth century when the Lords refused to adhere to the constitutional convention the result was that the House of Lords power

want to read more? →