Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is to promise “the biggest ever transfer of power from Westminster to the British people” if his party wins the next election. He will launch a report in Leeds on Monday that proposes far-reaching reforms to the UK’s political system. The report will recommend abolishing the House of Lords, despite some peers warning against this. Sir Keir told the Sunday Times the changes could take more than one term. But Sir Keir told the newspaper the report – which he commissioned in 2020 and was overseen by former Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown – was not “intended to sit on a shelf”.
The Labour leader said it was “an important report” which “we will now consult about implementing”. He will set out the recommendations in the report, titled A New Britain, alongside Mr Brown on Monday. The report will put forward 40 recommendations, including proposals for handing new economic powers to English mayors, local authorities and devolved governments.
The report argues the “continuing over-concentration of power in Westminster and Whitehall is undermining our ability to deliver growth and prosperity for the whole country”, creating a “vicious circle”. One of its most eye-catching recommendations will be a proposal to scrap the House of Lords and replace it with an elected chamber. The size and role of the House of Lords has come under scrutiny in recent years, amid warnings that unelected membership has grown excessive, with about 800 sitting members. The Observer reported last month that Sir Keir told Labour peers part of the argument for reform was the public having “lost faith in the ability of politicians and politics to bring about change”.
Speaking to Times Radio, Conservative peer Lord Norton argued the Lords should remain unelected and urged caution over “Big Bang reform”. He said the “detailed legislative scrutiny” done by the Lords “improves the law of this country”. But Labour sources insist the party remains committed to abolishing the Lords.
The party will consult on the report’s proposals and the timeframe in which they can be delivered before deciding whether to put them in its next election manifesto. One Labour source said “everything in our manifesto we will seek to deliver in a parliamentary term”.
The report comes as Labour enjoys a handsome lead in the polls over the Conservatives, who lost a by-election in Chester by a large margin this week. In his speech on Monday, Sir Keir is expected to promise “a wider spread of power and opportunity” to deliver “better economic growth that benefits everyone”. “People know Britain needs change,” he will say. “But they are never going to get it from the Tories. I am determined that, with Labour, people will get the change they deserve.”
