House of Lords Bill [HL]

I have said this so many times that I regret that I have to rise yet again at the Dispatch Box, to the displeasure of the noble Lord, Lord Grocott, to explain this once more. We are now approaching the end of the second hour of this debate. My view is changing on the issue of the urgency of Lords reform precisely because we debate it so much. I share the frustration that beats in the heart of almost every single noble Lord who has spoken this afternoon that there is not more activity and more action. That is why I have said that I will have to have urgent discussions with my right honourable friend David Cameron to try to see whether we can have a more concrete proposal for a directly elected senate as soon as possible after the next general election, if we were to win it. It is precisely because of the energy that the noble Lord, Lord Steel, and his friends, have demonstrated today, that which the noble Lord, Lord Oakeshott, demonstrated last week, and no doubt that which will be demonstrated on the second or third day in Committee, that I am drawn to this conclusion. If this House never debated this issue, I could wholly understand why my right honourable friend would not regard it as the most important priority.