Nick Clegg: House of Lords is an affront to democracy

Writing in today’s Independent, Nick Clegg is in combative form on House of Lord’s reform whilst throwing in a hint that he’s happy with a compromise on a less than 100% elected Lords:

As you read this I am with statesmen and dignitaries from more than 100 countries at the Rio+20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development. There are leaders from countries with a wide range of different democratic systems and almost overwhelmingly they are united by one belief: that the people who make the laws should be elected.

It seems bizarre to think that, in Britain in the 21st century, that should still be a controversial statement, and yet the majority of politicians in our own Parliament are not elected. They sit in the House of Lords, a body of appointed politicians that is growing at a startling rate and has no democratic mandate…

Of course among our peers there are those with valuable experience and expertise who have made a vital contribution. But we can protect that expertise and still end the existence of an institution whose current composition is an affront to the principles of openness which underpin a modern democracy.

You can read Nick Clegg’s piece in full here.