Nigel Farage speaks for millions when he called on the Prime Minister for the right to nominate Reform UK members and supporters to the House of Lords. Given where Reform sits in national opinion polls, Farage can rightly argue this would address a major “democratic disparity”.
The Reform leader - writing to Sir Keir Starmer - in a letter first disclosed by The Times, said his was a “modest request”. Farage argued it was other unfair smaller parties had peers, but Reform did not, despite winning more votes than they did in the 2024 election.
Predictably Labour grandees could only respond with jibes like those of Defence Secretary, John Healey, who said Parliament would not benefit from “more Putin apologists”. Like that is going to win back Runcorn!
Farage - having called for a smaller and more democratic Lords in the past - will likely face charges of hypocrisy yet not only is he right that - as things stand - having Reform peers would be more representative but would also help build a base for Reform in Parliament.
Farage is on record saying he would like to see top government jobs going to specialists who are not necessarily MPs. While appointing people to top jobs who are outside Parliament altogether might be tricky, drawing on peers could be easier for him.
After all, former-PM David (later Lord) Cameron became Foreign Secretary from the Lords. Historically meanwhile it was far more common to have Prime Ministers and ministers coming from the House of Lords. There is nothing constitutionally to stop this.
More strategically Farage won't want to find himself leading a future government in the Commons but facing an obstructionist Lords blocking his administration at every turn. Having more Reform peers could avoid this frustrating turn of events.
Frankly, little is likely to change in the short-term. Political appointments to the Lords are made at the PM's discretion and Sir Keir is under no obligation to elevate opposition figures to the Lords (even though by convention opposition leaders are often called on to nominate peers).
Honestly, why would Sir Keir help his chief opponent in the Commons, even if it would make the upper chamber more representative? Nevertheless, Farage is likely to keep this issue live, especially since he won't want the Lords blocking him at every turn in a future Reform government. Expect to hear more on this in the months ahead.
