House of Lords

==Procedure==
{{See also|Acts of Parliament in the United Kingdom#Stages of a bill}}
[[File:Chamber of the House of Lords benches.jpg|thumb|right|Benches in the chamber are coloured red. In contrast, the benches in the House of Commons are green.]]
[[File:Thrones in the House of Lords c1902.jpg|thumb|The royal thrones, c.&nbsp;1902. The Sovereign's throne (on left) is raised slightly higher than the consort's.]]

The House of Lords and the House of Commons assemble in the Palace of Westminster. The Lords Chamber is lavishly decorated, in contrast with the more modestly furnished Commons Chamber. Benches in the Lords Chamber are coloured red. The [[Woolsack]] is at the front of the Chamber; the Government sit on benches on the right of the Woolsack, while members of the Opposition sit on the left. Crossbenchers sit on the benches immediately opposite the Woolsack.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld/ldcomp/compso2010/ldctso04.htm#a3|title=House of Lords briefing paper, A Guide to Business, page 3|access-date=5 June 2011}}</ref>

The Lords Chamber is the site of many formal ceremonies, the most famous of which is the [[State Opening of Parliament]], held at the beginning of each new parliamentary session. During the State Opening, the [[British monarchy|Sovereign]], seated on the Throne in the Lords Chamber and in the presence of both Houses of Parliament, delivers a speech outlining the Government's agenda for the upcoming parliamentary session.

In the House of Lords, members need not seek the recognition of the presiding officer before speaking, as is done in the House of Commons. If two or more Lords simultaneously rise to speak, the House decides which one is to be heard by acclamation, or, if necessary, by voting on a motion. Often, however, the Leader of the House will suggest an order, which is thereafter generally followed. Speeches in the House of Lords are addressed to the House as a whole ("My Lords") rather than to the presiding officer alone (as is the custom in the Lower House). Members may not refer to each other in the second person (as "you"), but rather use third person forms such as "the noble Duke", "the noble Earl", "the noble Lord", "my noble friend", "The most Reverend Primate", etc.

Each member may make no more than one speech on a motion, except that the mover of the motion may make one speech at the beginning of the debate and another at the end. Speeches are not subject to any time limits in the House; however, the House may put an end to a speech by approving a motion "that the noble Lord be no longer heard". It is also possible for the House to end the debate entirely, by approving a motion "that the Question be now put". This procedure is known as [[cloture|Closure]], and is extremely rare. Six closure motions were passed on 4 April 2019 to significant media attention as part of consideration of a [[private member's bill]] concerning the [[Brexit|United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union]].<ref>HL Deb, 4 April 2019, c241, c251, c271, c286, c296, c312.</ref>

Once all speeches on a motion have concluded, or Closure invoked, the motion may be put to a vote. The House first votes by [[voice vote]]; the Lord Speaker or Deputy Speaker puts the question, and the Lords respond either "content" (in favour of the motion) or "not content" (against the motion). The presiding officer then announces the result of the voice vote, but if his assessment is challenged by any Lord, a recorded vote known as a [[division (vote)|division]] follows.

Members of the House enter one of two lobbies (the ''content'' lobby or the ''not-content'' lobby) on either side of the Chamber, where their names are recorded by clerks. At each lobby are two Tellers (themselves members of the House) who count the votes of the Lords. The Lord Speaker may not take part in the vote. Once the division concludes, the Tellers provide the results thereof to the presiding officer, who then announces them to the House.

If there is an equality of votes, the motion is decided according to the following principles: legislation may proceed in its present form, unless there is a majority in favour of amending or rejecting it; any other motions are rejected, unless there is a majority in favour of approving it. The quorum of the House of Lords is just three members for a general or procedural vote, and 30 members for a vote on legislation. If fewer than three or 30 members (as appropriate) are present, the division is invalid.

Special arrangements were made during the 2020 [[COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom|COVID-19 pandemic]] to allow some duties to be carried out online.<ref>{{cite news|last=Syal|first=Rajeev|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/apr/09/house-of-lords-online-parliament-reopens-coronavirus|title=House of Lords to conduct some duties online when parliament reopens|date=9 April 2020|work=The Guardian|access-date=10 April 2020|issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

===Disciplinary powers===
By contrast with the House of Commons, the House of Lords has not until recently had an established procedure for imposing sanctions on its members. When a [[2009 cash for influence scandal|cash for influence scandal]] was referred to the Committee of Privileges in January 2009, the Leader of the House of Lords also asked the Privileges Committee to report on what sanctions the House had against its members.<ref name="Reference to committee">{{cite web|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200809/ldselect/ldprivi/87/8703.htm|title=The Powers of the House of Lords in respect of its Members|publisher=House of Lords, Committee for Privileges|at=paragraph 2}}</ref> After seeking advice from the Attorney General for England and Wales and the former Lord Chancellor [[James Mackay, Baron Mackay of Clashfern|James Mackay, Lord Mackay of Clashfern]], the committee decided that the House "possessed an inherent power" to suspend errant members, although not to withhold a [[Hereditary peer#Writs of summons|writ of summons]] nor to expel a member permanently.<ref name="Powers of suspension">{{cite web|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200809/ldselect/ldprivi/87/8703.htm|title=The Powers of the House of Lords in respect of its Members|publisher=House of Lords, Committee for Privileges|at=paragraph 8}}</ref> When the House subsequently suspended [[Peter Truscott, Baron Truscott|Peter Truscott, Lord Truscott]] and [[Tom Taylor, Baron Taylor of Blackburn|Tom Taylor, Lord Taylor of Blackburn]] for their role in the scandal, they were the first to meet this fate since 1642.<ref name="Taylor and Truscott suspended">{{cite news|first=Andrew|last=Sparrow|title='Sullied' members suspend two peers in first case since 1642|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=21 May 2009|page=6}}</ref>

Recent changes have expanded the disciplinary powers of the House. Section 3 of the [[House of Lords Reform Act 2014]] now provides that any member of the House of Lords convicted of a crime and sentenced to imprisonment for more than one year loses their seat. The [[House of Lords (Expulsion and Suspension) Act 2015]] allows the House to set up procedures to suspend, and to expel, its members.

====Regulation of behaviour in the chamber====
There are two motions which have grown up through custom and practice and which govern questionable conduct within the House. They are brought into play by a member standing up, possibly intervening on another member, and moving the motion without notice. When the debate is getting excessively heated, it is open to a member to move "that the Standing Order on Asperity of Speech be read by the Clerk". The motion can be debated,<ref name="Asperity of speech">{{cite web|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld/ldcomp/ldctso06.htm#a61|title=Companion to the Standing Orders and guide to the proceedings of the House of Lords|date=October 2006|at=paragraph 4.58|publisher=Parliament of the United Kingdom}}</ref> but if agreed by the House, the Clerk of the Parliaments will read Standing Order 32 which provides "That all personal, sharp, or taxing speeches be forborn".<ref name="Standing Order 32">{{cite web|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld/ldstords/105/105.pdf|title=The Standing Orders of the House of Lords|date=23 April 2015|publisher=[[Parliament of the United Kingdom]]}}</ref> The Journals of the House of Lords record only four instances on which the House has ordered the Standing Order to be read since the procedure was invented in 1871.<ref name="Asperity instances">See Lords Journal vol. CIII p. 629, vol. CIV p. 381, vol. 182 p. 90, and vol. 231 p. 644 and 648–9.</ref>

For more serious problems with an individual Lord, the option is available to move "That the noble Lord be no longer heard". This motion also is debatable, and the debate which ensues has sometimes offered a chance for the member whose conduct has brought it about to come to order so that the motion can be withdrawn. If the motion is passed, its effect is to prevent the member from continuing their speech on the motion then under debate.<ref name="No longer heard">{{cite web|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld/ldcomp/ldctso06.htm#a62|title=Companion to the Standing Orders and guide to the proceedings of the House of Lords|date=October 2006|at=paragraphs 4.59 and 4.60}}</ref> The Journals identify eleven occasions on which this motion has been moved since 1884; four were eventually withdrawn, one was voted down, and six were passed.<ref name="No longer heard instances">See Lords Journal vol. CXVI p. 162, vol. CXXIII p. 354, vol. 192 p. 231, vol. 215 pp. 200–1, vol. 218 p. 119, vol. 221 p. 539, vol. 225 p. 194, vol. 226 p. 339, vol. 228 p. 308, vol. 229 p. 89, and vol. 233 p. 791.</ref>

===Leave of absence===
In 1958, to counter criticism that some peers only appeared at major decisions in the House and thereby particular votes were swayed, the Standing Orders of the House of Lords were enhanced.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld199798/ldbrief/ldreform.htm|title=House of Lords – Reform and Proposals for Reform since 1900|access-date=7 October 2010}}</ref> Peers who did not wish to attend meetings regularly or were prevented by ill health, age or further reasons, were now able to request leave of absence.<ref>{{cite book|publisher=The Stationery Office|title =The House of Lords: Reform|year = 2007|isbn=978-0-10-170272-0|page=12}}</ref> During the granted time a peer is expected not to visit the House's meetings until either its expiration or termination, announced at least a month prior to their return.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.parliament.uk/about/faqs/house-of-lords-faqs/lords-members/|title=Parliament of the United Kingdom, Official Website – FAQ|publisher=Parliament of the United Kingdom|access-date=7 October 2010}}</ref>

===Attendance allowance===
Via a new financial support system introduced in 2010, members of the House of Lords can opt to receive an attendance allowance per sitting day of currently £342 (as of 2023; initially it was £300 in 2010), plus limited travel expenses. Peers can choose to receive a reduced attendance allowance of £171 per day instead, or none at all.<ref>{{cite web|title = Guide to Financial Support for Members|url = https://www.parliament.uk/globalassets/documents/lords-finance-office/2022-23/members-guide-april-2023-web-version.pdf|website = UK Parliament|access-date = 27 May 2023|date = April 2023}}</ref> 
Prior to 2010, peers from outside London could claim an overnight allowance of £174.<ref name=telegraph-20150729>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/conservative/11769736/Peer-claims-300-a-day-in-expenses-to-walk-200-yards-to-work-at-House-of-Lords.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/conservative/11769736/Peer-claims-300-a-day-in-expenses-to-walk-200-yards-to-work-at-House-of-Lords.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Peer claims £300 a day in expenses to walk 200 yards to work at House of Lords |first=Michael |last=Wilkinson |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph|date=29 July 2015 |access-date=4 April 2016}}{{cbignore}}</ref>