Alarms have been raised by the Electoral Reform Society over a proposal drawn up by the CT Group – a political lobbying firm run by Conservative councilor Lynton Crosby – to appoint up to 50 new Tory lawmakers for prime minister. The leaked document sparked condemnation from Gordon Brown and led to accusations that the Lords were already “bursting at the seams”, meaning more “substantial checks and balances” were needed on appointments. A poll by Opinium found that 54% of people are against Johnson drawing up a “resignation price” list that could exonerate key allies who had stuck by him during the final days of his administration and urged him to fight. Just 13% supported the move, while 34% expressed no opinion. Among voters who supported the Conservatives in 2019, 41% were against the plan while 21% were in favor. There were 2,000 adults surveyed in late July, and their responses were weighted to be nationally representative. Darren Hughes, chief executive of the Society for Electoral Reform, told the Guardian that most people were opposed to “prime ministers filling the Lords with friends and donors as they head for the exit door”. He said: “Each new peer created has a lifetime right to sit in parliament, meaning potentially decades of influence on our laws as well as spending on the public. How they are chosen matters. “At more than 800 members, the Lords are already bursting at the seams, and with more peerages planned, it is clear that we cannot simply rely on the restraint of individual prime ministers to reduce our bloated second chamber. “This is why we urgently need to reform the system so that there are meaningful checks and balances governing who is appointed to the Lords. “Ultimately, it should not be up to the whim of the Prime Minister to decide who makes and controls our laws. It is time to end this system of unchecked political patronage and ensure that all our legislators are elected by the people they serve.” While previous prime ministers appointed counterparts at the end of their government, Johnson was accused by former Lord Speaker Helene Hayman of trying to “breach constitutional rules”. She told the BBC: “I’m not sure Boris Johnson understands that having a challenging House of Lords actually improves government policy and improves legislation.” The current Lord Speaker, John McFaul, has written to both Tory leadership candidates to urge them not to follow their lead and to usher in their own influx of peers. Rishi Sunak is considered to have responded, but Liz Truss is not. Analysis by the Institute for Government found that in just three years, Johnson had already made 86 appointments to the Lords – equivalent to 10% of his current size. Although the House of Lords nominations committee may advise against giving some candidates peers, the thinktank’s deputy director Hannah White said “on his way out of Downing Street there will be even less incentive for Johnson to exercise restraint”. . A government spokesman said that given the number of peers leaving, some new members were necessary to retain the expertise and perspective of the upper chamber and ensure it could continue to scrutinize legislation. The spokesman added that successive prime ministers had drawn up dissolution or resignation lists for peers. CT Group said its proposals to boost the Lords were an “early working draft” prepared for a think tank to “help the debate”.
