0:00:05 > 0:00:08One of the weird things about this place is...
0:00:08 > 0:00:10- Only one?- Again, my Lord.
0:00:10 > 0:00:13..when people come down, I'll say good morning to them,
0:00:13 > 0:00:15even though now it's just after two o'clock,
0:00:15 > 0:00:18because in the House here it's morning until prayers are read.
0:00:18 > 0:00:20- Morning, my Lord. - Good afternoon.
0:00:20 > 0:00:23Still morning, my Lord. Till prayers are read.
0:00:23 > 0:00:24Morning.
0:00:24 > 0:00:27As political elites everywhere go up in flames,
0:00:27 > 0:00:30one place remains untouched.
0:00:30 > 0:00:32Welcome to the Lords.
0:00:32 > 0:00:35Mother always used to say, "It's ridiculous, the House of Lords
0:00:35 > 0:00:38"never does anything." Well, I mean, that isn't actually true.
0:00:38 > 0:00:41Fair exchange. An iPad for a sword.
0:00:42 > 0:00:47In a TV first, we filmed behind the scenes in a turbulent year,
0:00:47 > 0:00:50which has seen the nation in chaos..
0:00:51 > 0:00:55..and the Lords on a war footing with the Government.
0:00:55 > 0:00:56Division!
0:00:57 > 0:01:02They want to cart us off, lock us up and tell us to shut up.
0:01:02 > 0:01:04Made my first vote.
0:01:04 > 0:01:08At a time when the political rule book is being torn up,
0:01:08 > 0:01:13is there still a place for this very British institution?
0:01:13 > 0:01:16Woe betide them if the Government should ever
0:01:16 > 0:01:19take the House of Lords for granted.
0:01:26 > 0:01:29Morning, my Lord. Morning, my Lord.
0:01:29 > 0:01:30Hello.
0:01:32 > 0:01:34Hello, my Lord.
0:01:36 > 0:01:39Maybe then I should have told the Lord Bishop that it's still morning
0:01:39 > 0:01:42till prayers are read cos he is one of the ones
0:01:42 > 0:01:44who does read the prayers, and he should really know that, but...
0:01:44 > 0:01:46We'll see if that comes back!
0:01:56 > 0:01:58It's terribly like being at school.
0:01:58 > 0:02:03You get given a locker and you get given a clothes peg, and I'm always
0:02:03 > 0:02:09immensely proud. I was able to keep my great-grandfather's sign,
0:02:09 > 0:02:11which says L Palmer.
0:02:11 > 0:02:14And you can see that all the rest are sort of white,
0:02:14 > 0:02:16whereas mine dates from 1933.
0:02:20 > 0:02:24The Lords' day starts with a procession overseen by one of the
0:02:24 > 0:02:28House's senior officials, known as Black Rod.
0:02:28 > 0:02:33The daily rigmarole of getting dressed for the procession -
0:02:33 > 0:02:40I can do it in just five minutes if I'm pressed and running late.
0:02:43 > 0:02:47I never thought I'd get expert at putting stockings or tights on,
0:02:47 > 0:02:50but once you've mastered the art, it's not difficult.
0:02:50 > 0:02:54You just have to be careful you don't push your foot
0:02:54 > 0:02:56carelessly through the sides.
0:02:58 > 0:03:02And I've now discovered what denier they are
0:03:02 > 0:03:05when you go to replace them in the stores.
0:03:10 > 0:03:13Lords gather in the chamber, ready for business.
0:03:13 > 0:03:18Once, they were aristocrats who had a seat here because of their title.
0:03:18 > 0:03:22Now just 92 hereditary peers remain
0:03:22 > 0:03:25among the more than 800 who have a seat here.
0:03:25 > 0:03:28Many are ghosts from the House of Commons,
0:03:28 > 0:03:31appointed by the Prime Minister of the day.
0:03:31 > 0:03:35There are three former Cabinet ministers over there. It's like
0:03:35 > 0:03:40Thatcher's Cabinet suddenly all sitting together once again.
0:03:40 > 0:03:46This is known as the Conservative Privy Counsellors' bench,
0:03:46 > 0:03:50and it tends to be former Cabinet ministers, yes.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56You've got people who've got long-standing political experience,
0:03:56 > 0:04:00people who have got long-standing experience outside
0:04:00 > 0:04:05the political arena, you've got people who may well be part of
0:04:05 > 0:04:08the patronage of the government of the day,
0:04:08 > 0:04:12rewarded for either keeping their mouth shut or opening their mouth
0:04:12 > 0:04:16or their purse at a particular moment in time.
0:04:17 > 0:04:23Far too many people have been put in here as a sort of personal reward,
0:04:23 > 0:04:27and you wouldn't have imagined Mrs Thatcher
0:04:27 > 0:04:31wanting to give a peerage to Denis Thatcher's tailor, or something
0:04:31 > 0:04:36like that, but we've come pretty close to that in recent years.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39- Good morning, my Lord. - Morning.
0:04:45 > 0:04:48Once peers have a seat, it's theirs for life,
0:04:48 > 0:04:51however long that life might be.
0:04:51 > 0:04:52Lord Carrington just went in there.
0:04:52 > 0:04:56He is, I believe, the eldest peer. 96, almost 97.
0:04:56 > 0:04:58- Morning.- Morning, my Lord.
0:04:58 > 0:05:00A lot of them, although they are old,
0:05:00 > 0:05:03they're still fantastic speakers. Their minds are great,
0:05:03 > 0:05:05they've got a wealth of knowledge and a lifetime of experience,
0:05:05 > 0:05:08but unfortunately their bodies are going before their minds,
0:05:08 > 0:05:10so they look a lot more frail than they actually are.
0:05:10 > 0:05:12You don't want to be on the wrong end of a tongue-lashing
0:05:12 > 0:05:15from some of them, that's for sure.
0:05:15 > 0:05:19The majority of lords are over 70, and some are over 90.
0:05:21 > 0:05:24It is the best day-care centre for the elderly in London.
0:05:24 > 0:05:27Families can drop in him or her,
0:05:27 > 0:05:31make sure that the staff look after them very well,
0:05:31 > 0:05:35there'll be nice meals subsidised by the taxpayer,
0:05:35 > 0:05:37and they can have a snooze in the chamber in the afternoon,
0:05:37 > 0:05:39or in the library.
0:05:44 > 0:05:46Paddy.
0:05:46 > 0:05:51- Hello.- I'll do you a fair exchange. An iPad for a sword.
0:05:51 > 0:05:56For five minutes each day, the 21st century is put on hold.
0:05:56 > 0:05:59Constantly asked whether I'd ever use it on anybody and the answer is,
0:05:59 > 0:06:01of course I'd think of using it,
0:06:01 > 0:06:04but only consistent with what the law allows.
0:06:06 > 0:06:07It is a very dangerous weapon.
0:06:07 > 0:06:11It's extremely sharp on the end of it, and I don't think I'd hesitate
0:06:11 > 0:06:14if there was some miscreant or delinquent.
0:06:14 > 0:06:17Lord Speaker!
0:06:23 > 0:06:25The point of the procession,
0:06:25 > 0:06:29it marks a transition between the House being used as it was today,
0:06:29 > 0:06:31probably close to 1,000 tourists...
0:06:31 > 0:06:34My Lords, the Lord Speaker!
0:06:34 > 0:06:35..1,000 tourists coming through,
0:06:35 > 0:06:38and now we're going into serious legislation.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47The ceremony is just absolutely ridiculous.
0:06:49 > 0:06:53But having said that, it's like Britain is good at fancy dress.
0:06:53 > 0:06:54That's what we do.
0:06:54 > 0:06:59My Lords, Ladies and Gentlemen, please rise for the Lord Speaker.
0:07:00 > 0:07:04It should be a special place. It is the country's legislature.
0:07:04 > 0:07:08It's part of the distinctiveness, not just of Parliament, by the way,
0:07:08 > 0:07:10but of Britain.
0:07:10 > 0:07:12Part of our identity.
0:07:28 > 0:07:31It's March 2016.
0:07:31 > 0:07:35The Government's flagship bill on housing is dividing the nation.
0:07:35 > 0:07:38The Government says it will help solve the housing shortage
0:07:38 > 0:07:41by increasing ownership.
0:07:41 > 0:07:42Kill, kill the housing bill.
0:07:42 > 0:07:46Kill, kill the housing bill. Kill, kill the housing bill.
0:07:46 > 0:07:49Opponents say it will make the vulnerable homeless
0:07:49 > 0:07:51by cutting social housing.
0:07:52 > 0:07:56It's a horrible, horrible, horrible piece of legislation,
0:07:56 > 0:07:59attacking a social class of people. It needs to be thrown out,
0:07:59 > 0:08:02at least watered-down, because it's absolutely disgraceful.
0:08:02 > 0:08:06Kill, kill the housing bill. Kill, kill the housing bill.
0:08:07 > 0:08:10The bill has sailed through the Commons,
0:08:10 > 0:08:14only the unelected lords now have the power to change it.
0:08:18 > 0:08:21The housing bill is one of many pieces of legislation
0:08:21 > 0:08:26which comes from the Commons. The Lords' job is to try and improve it
0:08:26 > 0:08:28by drafting amendments.
0:08:28 > 0:08:30That looks like it.
0:08:30 > 0:08:32Sorry.
0:08:32 > 0:08:36We take all of the nonsense, rubbish legislation -
0:08:36 > 0:08:37and some of it is rubbish -
0:08:37 > 0:08:41that comes down from the other end of the building in the Commons,
0:08:41 > 0:08:44and it disappears inside the House of Lords for six months
0:08:44 > 0:08:49while we work on it, line by line, clause by clause, and we improve it.
0:08:49 > 0:08:53I look at what the Lords does and what the Commons does, and the
0:08:53 > 0:08:57comparative legislative chaos that is being sent from the Commons
0:08:57 > 0:09:00to the Lords, and I genuinely think,
0:09:00 > 0:09:04thank God the Lords are there to do the serious work without just being
0:09:04 > 0:09:07inundated with the political point-scoring.
0:09:07 > 0:09:09We're a bit like a composting machine.
0:09:09 > 0:09:13Whatever comes out the other end is always more fragrant
0:09:13 > 0:09:15and more fertile than what went in.
0:09:15 > 0:09:18So, you see, we're really, in the House of Lords,
0:09:18 > 0:09:21we're really just Parliamentary worms.
0:09:21 > 0:09:24Most amendments are uncontroversial.
0:09:24 > 0:09:28But if the lords can't agree, a vote is called.
0:09:30 > 0:09:32Division!
0:09:35 > 0:09:39A defeat for the Government will hold up the bill, and in rare cases,
0:09:39 > 0:09:41could even finish it for good.
0:09:45 > 0:09:49This year, the Government faces a tough battle.
0:09:49 > 0:09:52The opposition in the Commons is in disarray,
0:09:52 > 0:09:57but in the Lords, Labour and Lib Dem peers outnumber the Government.
0:09:57 > 0:10:02The only place that there is a regular challenge to the executive
0:10:02 > 0:10:05by Parliament is in the House of Lords.
0:10:05 > 0:10:07It's a very unique situation.
0:10:07 > 0:10:10The leadership of the Government are reacting quite badly.
0:10:10 > 0:10:14They're annoyed, they're angry that they can't automatically
0:10:14 > 0:10:16get their business through.
0:10:21 > 0:10:24Conservative peer Lord Borwick is a party whip.
0:10:24 > 0:10:28His job is to push the housing bill through the Lords
0:10:28 > 0:10:30without too many changes.
0:10:30 > 0:10:32This is gossip central.
0:10:32 > 0:10:37This is the place where the information,
0:10:37 > 0:10:40at least from the Government's side, arrives,
0:10:40 > 0:10:44and I can distribute it to the Conservative peers.
0:10:44 > 0:10:48There are far more Liberal Democrats and Labour peers than there are
0:10:48 > 0:10:52Conservatives, but if we can keep our group together we can win votes
0:10:52 > 0:10:55that we would otherwise lose.
0:10:55 > 0:10:58We are also known as the Department of Dirty Tricks,
0:10:58 > 0:11:01of which Lord Borwick, of course, is the Chief Executive.
0:11:01 > 0:11:04And what are you?
0:11:04 > 0:11:06The water carrier?
0:11:06 > 0:11:08I'm a mere journeyman.
0:11:12 > 0:11:15The housing bill is not half complex.
0:11:15 > 0:11:20It's our job as a party whip to push it through, albeit a portfolio,
0:11:20 > 0:11:22an enormous, heavy suitcase.
0:11:22 > 0:11:25Never mind we've got this suitcase,
0:11:25 > 0:11:28we've got to carry it over the line and, therefore,
0:11:28 > 0:11:33as we get towards the end of the session,
0:11:33 > 0:11:35it's going to get more and more intense.
0:11:40 > 0:11:42Lord Borwick got his seat in the Lords
0:11:42 > 0:11:45through a very unusual by-election.
0:11:45 > 0:11:47When a hereditary peer dies or retires,
0:11:47 > 0:11:50remaining hereditaries vote on a replacement.
0:11:50 > 0:11:54Only those with an inherited title can apply.
0:11:54 > 0:11:58The first time I stood, I got no votes at all.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01Nil points. And you very seldom see a politician prepared to admit that
0:12:01 > 0:12:04he stood for election and got no votes.
0:12:04 > 0:12:07But I did, and I stood again, and I won the election.
0:12:07 > 0:12:13And it's been a really invigorating, enormous fun occupation.
0:12:15 > 0:12:18And I've never worked so hard for so little pay in my life.
0:12:21 > 0:12:25I think that must be baffling to people abroad that the only elected
0:12:25 > 0:12:27people in the second chamber are the hereditaries.
0:12:27 > 0:12:31What a wonderful story. That's the Ealing comedy that was never made.
0:12:31 > 0:12:33Do I deserve this place?
0:12:33 > 0:12:36Absolutely not. Am I jolly grateful that I've got it?
0:12:36 > 0:12:41Absolutely. And I hope now I've been working hard enough to reckon that
0:12:41 > 0:12:44other people might think I deserve it.
0:12:45 > 0:12:48Baroness King is a former Labour MP.
0:12:48 > 0:12:52She's been fighting the Government in the Lords for five years.
0:12:52 > 0:12:56She'd like to see radical changes to the housing bill.
0:12:56 > 0:12:59It's basically saying if you cannot afford market rent,
0:12:59 > 0:13:04you're on your own. I find it genuinely disgusting that, you know,
0:13:04 > 0:13:07people can just thoughtlessly put this sort of legislation through
0:13:07 > 0:13:10that leads to people on the streets.
0:13:10 > 0:13:13But first, there is an office move to be done.
0:13:13 > 0:13:18Well, I used to be in that office, then in this one.
0:13:18 > 0:13:20- Hello, my love. - And he was... You see?
0:13:20 > 0:13:24He was who I used to spend my days with, but now he's expelled me.
0:13:24 > 0:13:27Tell them where you expelled me, Dennis?
0:13:27 > 0:13:29- Across the road.- Across the road, because basically,
0:13:29 > 0:13:31if you can walk without need of a Zimmer frame, you're out.
0:13:31 > 0:13:34- Isn't that the truth? - Well, you could come back.
0:13:34 > 0:13:36Hang on a minute. Hang on a minute.
0:13:36 > 0:13:39- But it's true, isn't it?- Is that the reason he gave you, was it?
0:13:39 > 0:13:41That's the reason he gave me.
0:13:41 > 0:13:44Come back on the front bench and you can have your desk back.
0:13:44 > 0:13:47All right, thanks, Dennis. Yeah, I'll work on that.
0:13:47 > 0:13:48SHE LAUGHS
0:13:48 > 0:13:51There are roughly 200 female peers,
0:13:51 > 0:13:54a quarter of the total number of lords.
0:13:54 > 0:13:56Baroness King was offered a peerage twice
0:13:56 > 0:13:58before she accepted the honour.
0:13:58 > 0:14:00For me, personally,
0:14:00 > 0:14:03I didn't want to come in to the House of Lords to start with because
0:14:03 > 0:14:05it's just not really my cup of tea.
0:14:05 > 0:14:10But I appreciate that it's an incredible privilege to be able to
0:14:10 > 0:14:14go and argue with the people that decide Britain's laws.
0:14:15 > 0:14:20Wait. Amongst the bags and the shoes...here...
0:14:22 > 0:14:25Ta-da! Margaret Thatcher with an Afro.
0:14:25 > 0:14:28It means I'm at home in my office.
0:14:28 > 0:14:31She inspired me to go into politics.
0:14:31 > 0:14:34- Really?- I hated her so much I had to get involved.
0:14:34 > 0:14:38But with an Afro... then she's allowed in my office.
0:14:43 > 0:14:47In the countdown to the big hearing on the housing bill,
0:14:47 > 0:14:51both Government and opposition will try to build alliances.
0:14:53 > 0:14:56In the lords' dining room, peers mingle at the long table.
0:14:58 > 0:15:01They can't choose who they sit next to.
0:15:01 > 0:15:04This is where the actress speaks to the bishop.
0:15:04 > 0:15:09It is mandatory to sit next to the last person who sat down.
0:15:09 > 0:15:13So you may find yourself sitting next to a bishop, or to
0:15:13 > 0:15:18a Labour peer, or to a distinguished former Cabinet Minister.
0:15:18 > 0:15:23There is no doubt that the long table in this room is actually where
0:15:23 > 0:15:25this country is governed from.
0:15:27 > 0:15:29We like to think so, anyway.
0:15:32 > 0:15:35There are all sorts of different peers, you know.
0:15:35 > 0:15:38I mean, there are men peers, women peers.
0:15:38 > 0:15:40There are life peers and hereditary peers.
0:15:40 > 0:15:43But there are those that eat and those that don't.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46INDISTINCT CHATTER
0:15:46 > 0:15:49Oh, wonderful, thank you.
0:15:52 > 0:15:55I particularly favour the milk puddings.
0:15:55 > 0:15:57It's like being back at school.
0:15:57 > 0:16:01I think it just turns on a sort of virtuous circle.
0:16:05 > 0:16:06Oh, really?
0:16:10 > 0:16:16In the palace kitchens below, a former employee is paying a visit.
0:16:16 > 0:16:19This part of the kitchen is where all the preparation is done.
0:16:19 > 0:16:21And then, the most important part
0:16:21 > 0:16:25is our team of stewards, who are all are happy guys down the end there.
0:16:25 > 0:16:27- So, come say hello.- Yeah.
0:16:27 > 0:16:31- Guys...- Hello there.- ..this is Lord Bird.
0:16:31 > 0:16:35He used to be a steward in the terrace kitchen,
0:16:35 > 0:16:37and now he sits in the House of Lords.
0:16:37 > 0:16:40So there is opportunity for all of us, I would say.
0:16:40 > 0:16:42I was the washer-up!
0:16:42 > 0:16:46You know that after two weeks, they asked me to go?
0:16:46 > 0:16:49- Did they? - And that's because I was a member
0:16:49 > 0:16:53or a supporter of a very mad left-wing organisation.
0:16:53 > 0:16:56I was trying to destroy capitalism.
0:16:56 > 0:16:59- Right.- So I'd be trying to talk the stewards and the...
0:16:59 > 0:17:01- A revolution?- Yeah!
0:17:01 > 0:17:06Comrades! Anyway, there was an important woman who would say to me,
0:17:06 > 0:17:11"If you don't like it here, you can always bugger off to Russia!"
0:17:11 > 0:17:12And I'd say,
0:17:12 > 0:17:16"Yeah, but they'd shoot me before they'd shoot anybody else."
0:17:16 > 0:17:17And then she'd say, "I don't care.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20"Dead or alive, I don't want you in the kitchen."
0:17:20 > 0:17:22- Well, you're back now in a different guise.- Yes.
0:17:22 > 0:17:26Big Issue founder and housing campaigner John Bird has just
0:17:26 > 0:17:31been made a people's peer, chosen by an independent panel to bring
0:17:31 > 0:17:33a wider range of experience to the House.
0:17:33 > 0:17:36He knows what it means to be out on the streets.
0:17:36 > 0:17:40I spent my childhood and early manhood
0:17:40 > 0:17:42in the juvenile delinquent system.
0:17:42 > 0:17:48Stealing bikes, breaking into shops. It led to me being homeless,
0:17:48 > 0:17:51on the run, it was my kind of mind-set.
0:17:51 > 0:17:54I was just so outside of society.
0:17:54 > 0:17:56So outside of my family.
0:18:02 > 0:18:06Lord Palmer's housing challenge is maintaining his 110-room mansion
0:18:06 > 0:18:08and its 50 acres of garden.
0:18:10 > 0:18:13Along with his title and his seat in the Lords,
0:18:13 > 0:18:16he inherited an estate on the Scottish border.
0:18:17 > 0:18:21His family have lived in the house for 100 years.
0:18:21 > 0:18:25When John Kinross, the architect, asked my great-great-uncle,
0:18:25 > 0:18:28"How much can I spend?"
0:18:28 > 0:18:31my great-great-uncle said, "It doesn't really matter."
0:18:31 > 0:18:33An architect's dream come true.
0:18:35 > 0:18:39The final build was £225,000,
0:18:39 > 0:18:43which was a huge amount of money in those days.
0:18:43 > 0:18:46It's difficult to put an exact figure now,
0:18:46 > 0:18:48but probably in the region of 400 million,
0:18:48 > 0:18:51which is an awful lot of money for a roof over your head.
0:18:53 > 0:18:58Well, every house in Britain likes to have a USP,
0:18:58 > 0:19:02and Manderston, being relatively modern, our USP -
0:19:02 > 0:19:06unique selling point - is this amazing silver staircase.
0:19:06 > 0:19:09It was modelled on the staircase in Le Petit Trianon
0:19:09 > 0:19:11at the Palace of Versailles.
0:19:11 > 0:19:14But theirs is not silver.
0:19:14 > 0:19:18As far as we know, this is the only silver staircase in the world.
0:19:20 > 0:19:22Well, this is the dining room.
0:19:22 > 0:19:25And the picture on the right there, that is the first Lord Palmer.
0:19:25 > 0:19:29And he helped found the Royal College of Music.
0:19:29 > 0:19:34There's a tremendous swell of opinion that because I had a very,
0:19:34 > 0:19:36very distinguished great-grandfather
0:19:36 > 0:19:40that it's rather idiotic that I now have a place in Parliament.
0:19:40 > 0:19:43But not every system is always absolutely fool free,
0:19:43 > 0:19:47and most of us really do take our role very seriously.
0:19:50 > 0:19:54For 27 years, the House of Lords has been his other home.
0:19:54 > 0:19:57Most hereditaries were kicked out in 1999,
0:19:57 > 0:20:01but the aristocrats were allowed to elect 90 of their own to remain.
0:20:01 > 0:20:03It was very much my children who said,
0:20:03 > 0:20:05"Oh, you must stand for election,
0:20:05 > 0:20:08"because you seem to enjoy it, and you're quite good at it."
0:20:08 > 0:20:10So I did. One of the reasons I didn't want to stand was,
0:20:10 > 0:20:13I was so petrified of yet another failure.
0:20:13 > 0:20:16I mean, I got kicked out of every school I ever went to because
0:20:16 > 0:20:17I was incredibly stupid.
0:20:23 > 0:20:28He sits in the House as a crossbencher, one of nearly 200
0:20:28 > 0:20:32independent peers who don't belong to a political party.
0:20:32 > 0:20:38A lot of people who come in come in with a lifetime's accumulated
0:20:38 > 0:20:40experience of...it might be defence,
0:20:40 > 0:20:43the law, policing, the health service,
0:20:43 > 0:20:45higher education and universities.
0:20:46 > 0:20:51By and large, crossbenchers being 186, I think we are now,
0:20:51 > 0:20:53we slightly hold the balance of power
0:20:53 > 0:20:56because, at the moment, if, of course,
0:20:56 > 0:21:00the Liberal Democrats and the Labour Party gang up together, the
0:21:00 > 0:21:03Government doesn't have any chance of getting anything through at all.
0:21:06 > 0:21:08If the votes on the housing bill are close,
0:21:08 > 0:21:12the crossbenchers could decide the outcome.
0:21:13 > 0:21:16Their newest member is Lord Bird.
0:21:17 > 0:21:21I'd like to welcome Lord Bird, whose first time to our meeting this is.
0:21:24 > 0:21:27The worry about this is, when you come to look at the bill,
0:21:27 > 0:21:29you'll see...
0:21:29 > 0:21:32Labour MP John Healey is trying to convince the crossbenchers
0:21:32 > 0:21:35to support the opposition on the housing bill.
0:21:35 > 0:21:38I have to say, in the House of Commons, we made our arguments,
0:21:38 > 0:21:40we lost the vote.
0:21:40 > 0:21:44And we failed to get the improvements to the bill that
0:21:44 > 0:21:47we wanted to see as we went through the House of Commons.
0:21:47 > 0:21:50And many people are looking to your House now,
0:21:50 > 0:21:53and your judgments are going to be so important in the way this bill
0:21:53 > 0:21:57is dealt with and this legislation is, potentially, improved.
0:21:59 > 0:22:03The crossbenchers really are the pivotal peers.
0:22:03 > 0:22:07The session we've been able to have today is crucial in making sure
0:22:07 > 0:22:12that the critical group within the House of Lords has a sense of
0:22:12 > 0:22:14the legislation in front of them.
0:22:22 > 0:22:26Becoming a lord is trying to become more useful.
0:22:26 > 0:22:29People join the House for other reasons,
0:22:29 > 0:22:32but I've joined it to be useful. That's my interest.
0:22:33 > 0:22:37Before John Bird can influence Government housing policy,
0:22:37 > 0:22:40he must be formally sworn in.
0:22:40 > 0:22:44All I need you to do is put your left shoulder towards me, please.
0:22:44 > 0:22:46Slip that over your head...
0:22:48 > 0:22:50If you give me your left arm...
0:22:50 > 0:22:53I'm really glad I'm in the House of Lords.
0:22:53 > 0:22:56I don't think only the privileged should be allowed in.
0:23:01 > 0:23:05Garter King of Arms is the Queen's most senior herald.
0:23:05 > 0:23:09His job description hasn't changed for 400 years.
0:23:09 > 0:23:12Since 1621, in James I's reign,
0:23:12 > 0:23:16it is Garter's responsibility to come here
0:23:16 > 0:23:18and introduce the peer.
0:23:18 > 0:23:20Right arm through there.
0:23:24 > 0:23:28It's quite a heavy object, and it does up with the hooks.
0:23:28 > 0:23:32It's literally a coat of arms, so you've got three lions of England,
0:23:32 > 0:23:36the single lion of Scotland and the harp for Ireland.
0:23:36 > 0:23:38It's a bit tight at the moment,
0:23:38 > 0:23:41as you can see, but it was made for my predecessor.
0:23:41 > 0:23:44I've worn it, yes, 58 introductions this year,
0:23:44 > 0:23:46but, of course, I do two a day.
0:23:46 > 0:23:49And then this is Garter's sceptre.
0:23:49 > 0:23:51What's that for?
0:23:51 > 0:23:56Well, I suppose heralds since medieval times have carried a wand
0:23:56 > 0:23:59or rod of authority. I mean, just as Black Rod carries a rod.
0:23:59 > 0:24:02Right, we're going, I'm holding everybody up.
0:24:08 > 0:24:10People are understandably nervous,
0:24:10 > 0:24:12because you want to do the ceremony as well as possible,
0:24:12 > 0:24:16although it's a simple ceremony and only lasts about five minutes.
0:24:16 > 0:24:19The ones that everybody remembers are the ones that go wrong.
0:24:25 > 0:24:28I, John, Lord Bird,
0:24:28 > 0:24:33do swear by Almighty God that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance
0:24:33 > 0:24:37to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, her heirs and successors,
0:24:37 > 0:24:40according to law, so help me God.
0:24:44 > 0:24:48It was harder than I thought. And I'm really glad it's short and over!
0:24:48 > 0:24:51One of the Big Issue vendors said to me,
0:24:51 > 0:24:54"Remember, you're not there for yourself. You're there for others."
0:24:54 > 0:24:58If you go through Parliament for the next five, ten years,
0:24:58 > 0:25:01and you become richer and fatter,
0:25:01 > 0:25:03that's not the purpose.
0:25:03 > 0:25:05The purpose is to kind of
0:25:05 > 0:25:10represent the interests of those who are still stuck in the sticky stuff.
0:25:11 > 0:25:14John Bird has joined what some consider
0:25:14 > 0:25:18Britain's oldest and most exclusive club.
0:25:18 > 0:25:22You've got your parking space, right? You've got the restaurant
0:25:22 > 0:25:25and the bar. Nice to bring friends in, say hello.
0:25:25 > 0:25:29This is where they nip down for a meal and a drink and a chat,
0:25:29 > 0:25:32and, "I'm in the House of Lords."
0:25:33 > 0:25:36I mean, pretty well everybody knows where anybody's going to be
0:25:36 > 0:25:38at any particular time. And I had a very,
0:25:38 > 0:25:41very close friend who I know went into the Peers' Guest Room
0:25:41 > 0:25:44at quarter to 12 every day and had a gin and tonic.
0:25:44 > 0:25:48And I then knew that I'd be able to find him in the Bishop's Bar
0:25:48 > 0:25:52at quarter past 12, having a glass of red wine and a sandwich.
0:25:53 > 0:25:57Barry, can you give the table a quick look round as well?
0:25:59 > 0:26:02Unlike other clubs, members can claim money to be here,
0:26:02 > 0:26:04but they are expected to work.
0:26:04 > 0:26:06Peers don't have a salary,
0:26:06 > 0:26:10but can get up to £300 a day in expenses once they are signed in.
0:26:10 > 0:26:13I remember when I was a seaman and unemployed,
0:26:13 > 0:26:14it was called the job centre,
0:26:14 > 0:26:17and if you wanted to get your unemployment money you ticked on,
0:26:17 > 0:26:19and if you didn't get there, you didn't get it.
0:26:19 > 0:26:22That's exactly what they've got here.
0:26:22 > 0:26:26If you think that, today, a high-powered accountant or lawyer
0:26:26 > 0:26:30is probably charging £600 an hour,
0:26:30 > 0:26:35that we get £300 a day,
0:26:35 > 0:26:41the press outcry, if we had a tiny rise would be, I mean,
0:26:41 > 0:26:43just absolutely intolerable.
0:26:43 > 0:26:49There is a core of peers who work incredibly hard, who do that work,
0:26:49 > 0:26:54and there are, sad to say, many, many, many peers
0:26:54 > 0:26:59who contribute absolutely nothing, but who claim the full allowance.
0:26:59 > 0:27:03I can remember one occasion when I was leaving the House quite late,
0:27:03 > 0:27:08and there was a peer, who shall be utterly nameless, who jumped out of
0:27:08 > 0:27:12a taxi just outside the peers' entrance, left the engine running,
0:27:12 > 0:27:15he ran in, presumably to show that he'd attended,
0:27:15 > 0:27:18and then ran out again while the taxi was still running.
0:27:18 > 0:27:22So, I mean, that's not normal,
0:27:22 > 0:27:25but it is something that does happen,
0:27:25 > 0:27:29and I think that we have lost the sense of honour
0:27:29 > 0:27:32that used to pertain,
0:27:32 > 0:27:36and that is a great, great shame.
0:27:40 > 0:27:41- NEWS REPORT:- Our main story -
0:27:41 > 0:27:44hundreds of people are marching in London today
0:27:44 > 0:27:46to protest against the Government's housing bill.
0:27:46 > 0:27:47The proposed law...
0:27:47 > 0:27:49As well as tackling the housing bill,
0:27:49 > 0:27:54Baroness King is fighting for a cause even closer to home.
0:27:54 > 0:27:57The routine is a little bit haphazard.
0:27:57 > 0:28:01Kyle, you haven't done your piano practice.
0:28:01 > 0:28:04It's our new rule. Come on.
0:28:05 > 0:28:09'I have four children, three of whom are adopted.'
0:28:09 > 0:28:10Keep up!
0:28:10 > 0:28:13'Adoption means that even when you cannot have children,
0:28:13 > 0:28:15'you can have children,
0:28:15 > 0:28:18'and so it means the difference between having a family'
0:28:18 > 0:28:20and not having a family.
0:28:20 > 0:28:23To me, it is just... It's my life.
0:28:23 > 0:28:25It means everything to me.
0:28:27 > 0:28:29Adoption is a gruelling process, I suppose.
0:28:29 > 0:28:31It depends where you're coming from.
0:28:31 > 0:28:34We'd just done, over a period of, like, eight years,
0:28:34 > 0:28:38seven failed IVFs. So adoption...
0:28:38 > 0:28:40Yeah, you want to get down? OK.
0:28:40 > 0:28:41Adoption didn't seem that bad to me.
0:28:41 > 0:28:43Come on!
0:28:43 > 0:28:46She's worried the Government's Children and Social Work Bill
0:28:46 > 0:28:48will make it harder for families to adopt
0:28:48 > 0:28:51- by capping the amount of benefit they can claim.- As a politician,
0:28:51 > 0:28:55you've got to choose which battles you're going to fight.
0:28:55 > 0:28:58The child benefit issue is a really small thing. It's literally, like,
0:28:58 > 0:29:01loose change down the back of the sofa for the Government.
0:29:01 > 0:29:03But for the kids, it's their lives.
0:29:03 > 0:29:06That's why I get particularly enraged,
0:29:06 > 0:29:09because it's such a small thing,
0:29:09 > 0:29:11but it would have such a big impact.
0:29:15 > 0:29:17She wants to amend the law
0:29:17 > 0:29:20to exempt all adopted children from benefit cap.
0:29:23 > 0:29:27Lords can exercise power by lobbying their neighbours in the Commons.
0:29:27 > 0:29:31She's meeting two MPs to get their support.
0:29:31 > 0:29:35So we're just going to go to some weird little Lords room.
0:29:35 > 0:29:37Carpeted wallpaper.
0:29:37 > 0:29:41I know. It's very posh. You don't get that in B&Q, do you?
0:29:41 > 0:29:44I think you've probably still got posh wallpaper!
0:29:46 > 0:29:48Oh, look at this. Another nice chandelier.
0:29:48 > 0:29:50Wow.
0:29:50 > 0:29:55So, the reason that I've called you two power women here is because
0:29:55 > 0:29:57I wondered if you could help
0:29:57 > 0:29:59with something that I've been grappling with.
0:29:59 > 0:30:02Basically, to work out who is the best person to lobby.
0:30:02 > 0:30:04You know the DWP team,
0:30:04 > 0:30:07you know the children's lot,
0:30:07 > 0:30:09and so, between the two of you,
0:30:09 > 0:30:11I thought you'd be able to point me in the right direction.
0:30:11 > 0:30:15We really need to put the pressure on the Government side.
0:30:15 > 0:30:19Being in the Lords, I definitely don't have, in theory,
0:30:19 > 0:30:22the power I had as an MP.
0:30:22 > 0:30:27But it's amazing what you can do just by having the platform.
0:30:27 > 0:30:30So as a Labour lord, as you saw,
0:30:30 > 0:30:34I've got all my Labour MPs that will try and help me,
0:30:34 > 0:30:36and I'll try and help them.
0:30:36 > 0:30:38The other thing for lobbying,
0:30:38 > 0:30:41getting new MPs and old MPs on board,
0:30:41 > 0:30:43is, again, going through the constituent route.
0:30:43 > 0:30:45That is a really good idea.
0:30:45 > 0:30:48Thank you. Thank you, guys.
0:30:48 > 0:30:51Those are two exceptional MPs. Between the two of them,
0:30:51 > 0:30:54I have every confidence that my sisters
0:30:54 > 0:30:57are going to sort out the men.
0:31:02 > 0:31:05Lord Palmer is doing some lobbying of his own.
0:31:06 > 0:31:09Those used to be our television room,
0:31:09 > 0:31:12which had the most lovely, comfortable chairs in it,
0:31:12 > 0:31:17and to watch big sporting events like Wimbledon or Cheltenham races,
0:31:17 > 0:31:19or whatever.
0:31:19 > 0:31:22And I came in here the other day and was amazed to find that
0:31:22 > 0:31:24it had been turned into an office.
0:31:24 > 0:31:27As you know, we're very, very short of space
0:31:27 > 0:31:29and a lot of the new members do want a desk,
0:31:29 > 0:31:32but I've never, ever seen these desks occupied,
0:31:32 > 0:31:35which does seem really rather extraordinary.
0:31:35 > 0:31:37And I actually put down a written question about this.
0:31:37 > 0:31:40Why has the television room closed down
0:31:40 > 0:31:43and will there be an alternative venue cited?
0:31:43 > 0:31:45And I was told in no uncertain terms,
0:31:45 > 0:31:48no, there will not be an alternative venue.
0:31:56 > 0:31:59As well as pushing the housing bill through the Lords,
0:31:59 > 0:32:03Lord Borwick is a multimillionaire property developer.
0:32:05 > 0:32:08His new estate is 2,600 homes.
0:32:09 > 0:32:13Getting the planning permission took about ten years
0:32:13 > 0:32:19and cost about £4 million in professional fees.
0:32:19 > 0:32:21Part of the reasons
0:32:21 > 0:32:23was the complexity of the planning process,
0:32:23 > 0:32:26so anything I can do to make it better, make it simpler,
0:32:26 > 0:32:29would be better for the future.
0:32:32 > 0:32:34The housing bill is needed
0:32:34 > 0:32:38because we've got a shortage of houses in the country,
0:32:38 > 0:32:42and that means people cannot get to the housing
0:32:42 > 0:32:44that they'd like to have.
0:32:44 > 0:32:46We've got to make planning simpler.
0:32:48 > 0:32:51- INTERVIEWER:- Is there a conflict of interest, as someone building
0:32:51 > 0:32:54a large housing estate and someone that has a say on the housing bill?
0:32:54 > 0:32:56There is a difficult line to be trod
0:32:56 > 0:32:59and we must always declare our interests,
0:32:59 > 0:33:00and let other people judge
0:33:00 > 0:33:04whether our interests are affecting what we say.
0:33:05 > 0:33:09The Lords get some of its strength from its experience.
0:33:09 > 0:33:12Registering an interest in debate is saying,
0:33:12 > 0:33:16"Hang on, guys, I know what I'm talking about here."
0:33:16 > 0:33:20I am using my expertise to make the bill better,
0:33:20 > 0:33:24not to make myself money out of this.
0:33:28 > 0:33:30Housing is also a subject close
0:33:30 > 0:33:34to homeless campaigner Lord Bird's heart.
0:33:34 > 0:33:36I've been up since about three,
0:33:36 > 0:33:39and it's now, what, about 8.30? 8.40?
0:33:39 > 0:33:41I couldn't sleep.
0:33:41 > 0:33:44But before he can contribute to debates,
0:33:44 > 0:33:47he has to give a maiden speech.
0:33:47 > 0:33:50My noble Lords and Ladies,
0:33:50 > 0:33:53thank you for this opportunity to make my maiden speech.
0:33:53 > 0:33:55- You didn't bring one?- No.
0:33:55 > 0:33:58It doesn't... I can always do it somewhere else.
0:33:58 > 0:34:03It's a great opportunity to say something cogent and meaningful,
0:34:03 > 0:34:05and that you can build on.
0:34:05 > 0:34:09But whether or not it comes out the way I want it, we'll see, won't we?
0:34:09 > 0:34:14Lord Bird has to address a house stuffed with political grandees,
0:34:14 > 0:34:17pillars of the Establishment, and the aristocracy.
0:34:18 > 0:34:22I thought they were very brave taking me.
0:34:22 > 0:34:24I don't know if I would take me!
0:34:24 > 0:34:27Cos, you know, I'm a bit of a wild card
0:34:27 > 0:34:30and I'm often inappropriate.
0:34:30 > 0:34:31He will have to win round
0:34:31 > 0:34:34people from a very different background to his own.
0:34:34 > 0:34:40Next to the House of Lords is a garden called Victoria Gardens.
0:34:40 > 0:34:42I used to sleep rough there.
0:34:42 > 0:34:45I'd climb the fence and sleep on one of the benches
0:34:45 > 0:34:48or down in the corner.
0:34:48 > 0:34:49Oh, just there?
0:34:54 > 0:34:57Making one's maiden speech, it's quite a frightening ordeal...
0:34:58 > 0:35:02..and I put an incredible amount of work into mine.
0:35:03 > 0:35:08I think I practised it and rewrote it... I think it was 98 times.
0:35:08 > 0:35:12Some people make their maiden speeches now terribly quickly,
0:35:12 > 0:35:14which I personally think is a shame,
0:35:14 > 0:35:18because you want to get the mood of the House.
0:35:18 > 0:35:21I had a friend who didn't make a maiden speech for 44 years!
0:35:21 > 0:35:23It was very much waiting...
0:35:23 > 0:35:25It was very good when it did eventually come
0:35:25 > 0:35:29but it's quite a long time to wait for your maiden speech.
0:35:29 > 0:35:31You can be sliced up without realising it.
0:35:31 > 0:35:33There's no place in the world
0:35:33 > 0:35:37that equals the House of Lords for the use of courtesy as a weapon.
0:35:37 > 0:35:40Is it just water, or do you want gin and tonic? Gin and tonic?
0:35:40 > 0:35:42No, no, no!
0:35:42 > 0:35:44Definitely not!
0:35:44 > 0:35:46When a maiden speech is made,
0:35:46 > 0:35:50members are expected to remain in their seats.
0:35:50 > 0:35:54And the other thing is, it should not be controversial.
0:36:06 > 0:36:08Thank you.
0:36:09 > 0:36:11HE CLEARS HIS THROAT
0:36:11 > 0:36:13Excuse me. I've got a bit of a frog.
0:36:16 > 0:36:19Someone said to me, "How did you get into the House of Lords?"
0:36:19 > 0:36:22I said, "By lying, cheating and stealing."
0:36:22 > 0:36:24LAUGHTER
0:36:24 > 0:36:27Because if I hadn't gone through...
0:36:27 > 0:36:32if I had not gone through that terrible self-defeat,
0:36:32 > 0:36:37I would never have been able to get out and learn to read and write
0:36:37 > 0:36:40in a boys' prison at the age of 16.
0:36:40 > 0:36:44We did send him a drink in. Hopefully it was just water
0:36:44 > 0:36:47and not gin and tonic, which might set him off!
0:36:47 > 0:36:51When I was 21, I had the misfortune, and the fortune,
0:36:51 > 0:36:55of being hiding from the police in Edinburgh, of all places.
0:36:55 > 0:36:59I met a very large-nosed Scotsman called Gordon Roddick.
0:36:59 > 0:37:0320 years later, I saw him on the telly and I said,
0:37:03 > 0:37:07"I know that big-nosed bugger." Excuse my French!
0:37:07 > 0:37:10We invest now in...
0:37:10 > 0:37:13My wife is telling me to wind up, so I should listen.
0:37:13 > 0:37:16- She's going like that. - LAUGHTER
0:37:16 > 0:37:19That must be the only reason for that sign.
0:37:19 > 0:37:21Thank you. God bless you all.
0:37:21 > 0:37:23INDISTINCT CHATTER
0:37:25 > 0:37:27I know why you're laughing.
0:37:27 > 0:37:29LAUGHTER
0:37:29 > 0:37:30I have to follow that!
0:37:34 > 0:37:35You know, he broke all the rules,
0:37:35 > 0:37:37the conventions of the House
0:37:37 > 0:37:40that everyone usually gets so excited about.
0:37:40 > 0:37:43He stood in the aisle instead of behind the chair,
0:37:43 > 0:37:45and you're not supposed to do that.
0:37:45 > 0:37:47He went on for nearly 15 minutes,
0:37:47 > 0:37:50which was a bit longer than he's supposed to.
0:37:50 > 0:37:53And some of the words he used were probably unparliamentary.
0:37:53 > 0:37:55But he got away with it all!
0:37:55 > 0:38:01Unusual, shall we say, as you will have picked up from the reactions.
0:38:01 > 0:38:06Good fun. A speech that will certainly have woken them up!
0:38:13 > 0:38:16It's three weeks until the housing bill
0:38:16 > 0:38:19is debated in the Lords Chamber.
0:38:19 > 0:38:25The opposition have tabled a series of amendments which could derail it.
0:38:25 > 0:38:28A lot of the things that are going through on this bill,
0:38:28 > 0:38:31they are hitting one section of the community all the time.
0:38:31 > 0:38:34If the Government is to win,
0:38:34 > 0:38:38party whip Lord Borwick must get the support of any undecided peers.
0:38:38 > 0:38:42The Government is a minority in the House of Lords
0:38:42 > 0:38:45so everything has to be done by agreement, really,
0:38:45 > 0:38:47because we can't bully anything through.
0:38:49 > 0:38:52As well as seeking support for the bill,
0:38:52 > 0:38:56he's tabled his own amendment to try and clarify a section on planning.
0:38:56 > 0:38:59I'm going to try and persuade Lady Jones from the Green Party
0:38:59 > 0:39:04to support it. She and I will totally disagree on the bill itself
0:39:04 > 0:39:08and will probably vote different ways on whether the bill passes,
0:39:08 > 0:39:12but my clause is about changing the detail not the meaning of the bill.
0:39:13 > 0:39:15- Do you want milk?- Yes, please.
0:39:15 > 0:39:18- A splash?- Just a splash.- That does smell like builder's as well.
0:39:18 > 0:39:21- Right.- OK. Sorry...- Yeah.
0:39:21 > 0:39:25This is clause 145, which I'm worried about.
0:39:25 > 0:39:28The wording is not terribly clear in my opinion,
0:39:28 > 0:39:33and my amendment is this one.
0:39:33 > 0:39:37My little amendment is not going to change the housing bill radically.
0:39:37 > 0:39:41It's a pretty small subject but for every clause
0:39:41 > 0:39:46in that enormous document, at least somewhere is a group of people
0:39:46 > 0:39:50who are thinking about, is this as good as it could be?
0:39:50 > 0:39:54As a Green, I've learned that if we don't do things cross party,
0:39:54 > 0:39:57it's incredibly difficult to get anything done at all
0:39:57 > 0:39:58and I think the whole bill
0:39:58 > 0:40:01is a disaster. If I could scrap the whole thing I would.
0:40:01 > 0:40:02But in the meantime,
0:40:02 > 0:40:06I will put my name to any tiny amendments to improve it.
0:40:14 > 0:40:15Hello.
0:40:15 > 0:40:18Sorry, which way is it to Black Rod?
0:40:18 > 0:40:19This way.
0:40:21 > 0:40:24New boy Lord Bird is already in trouble.
0:40:24 > 0:40:27- Good morning. How are you? - Very well.
0:40:27 > 0:40:30Can you now control your bad language in this House?
0:40:30 > 0:40:34- Yes, I will.- Otherwise you'll be, you know, drummed out, I suspect.
0:40:34 > 0:40:36I know. It's very interesting,
0:40:36 > 0:40:40cos there was a meeting about controlling one's mouth.
0:40:40 > 0:40:43- Oh, really? - So the two words that I used,
0:40:43 > 0:40:45which found their way into Hansard,
0:40:45 > 0:40:47won't find their way into Hansard again
0:40:47 > 0:40:49cos I won't use them.
0:40:49 > 0:40:52But do they edit them out for you or...
0:40:52 > 0:40:53No, they put them in.
0:40:53 > 0:40:56"Bugger" and "ponce" will be there, will they?
0:40:56 > 0:40:58"Bugger" and "ponce" will be there for eternity.
0:40:58 > 0:41:01I was saying, actually, to the ladies in the office,
0:41:01 > 0:41:03that you fit in rather well here
0:41:03 > 0:41:07because political correctness hasn't completely arrived in this office.
0:41:07 > 0:41:09Oh. Oh, that's good.
0:41:09 > 0:41:13So you should feel very comfortable here.
0:41:13 > 0:41:16'The purpose of my bill, Madam Deputy Speaker,
0:41:16 > 0:41:19'is to make sure that that election last week is the last...'
0:41:19 > 0:41:23Hereditary peer Lord Palmer feels distinctly uncomfortable.
0:41:23 > 0:41:26'Hereditary peers have existed for hundreds of years.'
0:41:26 > 0:41:30In the Commons, an MP is calling for an end to hereditaries in the Lords.
0:41:30 > 0:41:33'92 remain, and the question for our modern democracy,
0:41:33 > 0:41:34'Madam Deputy Speaker,
0:41:34 > 0:41:38'is what legitimacy do they have for the future?'
0:41:38 > 0:41:41The hereditary principle is very difficult to defend,
0:41:41 > 0:41:44except that if we went down to the pub tonight and said,
0:41:44 > 0:41:46"Oh, what do you think about House of Lords reform?"
0:41:46 > 0:41:49they would look at you as if you were completely and utterly bonkers.
0:41:49 > 0:41:52It doesn't feature on most people's radar.
0:41:52 > 0:41:55'So, Madam Deputy Speaker, the purpose of my bill is
0:41:55 > 0:41:58'to finally remove those who have their place in Parliament
0:41:58 > 0:42:00'by birth rather than by merit.'
0:42:00 > 0:42:03It is an attack, a very un-veiled attack,
0:42:03 > 0:42:06but I think one has to rise above it.
0:42:06 > 0:42:08That really is the only alternative.
0:42:14 > 0:42:16With his maiden speech over,
0:42:16 > 0:42:19Lord Bird's next big challenge is to speak in a debate.
0:42:19 > 0:42:23He wants to challenge the Government on its housing policy.
0:42:23 > 0:42:27He intends to ask the minister to define affordable housing.
0:42:27 > 0:42:30A lot of people in this country,
0:42:30 > 0:42:33when they hear the word "affordable",
0:42:33 > 0:42:35they see it almost as a fig leaf
0:42:35 > 0:42:39and lurking underneath it is the word "unaffordable".
0:42:40 > 0:42:42Every day at Question Time,
0:42:42 > 0:42:45peers get the opportunity to interrogate the Government.
0:42:45 > 0:42:49The point about questions is that they should raise issues
0:42:49 > 0:42:51which are topical to the currency
0:42:51 > 0:42:53of either what the Government is doing...
0:42:53 > 0:42:56It's one of the ways in which the House exercises
0:42:56 > 0:42:57part of its responsibility -
0:42:57 > 0:43:00that is, holding the Government to account.
0:43:00 > 0:43:04Everybody's been saying, "Be concise,
0:43:04 > 0:43:07"don't rush in too quickly, but don't hold back."
0:43:07 > 0:43:09A vital piece of information -
0:43:09 > 0:43:13the person who's going to reply is Baroness Williams.
0:43:13 > 0:43:15Don't say "Lord".
0:43:15 > 0:43:17Anyway, that's...
0:43:17 > 0:43:19Thank you, thank you, David, yes.
0:43:19 > 0:43:21So, anyway...
0:43:22 > 0:43:25There's always somebody in that chamber who knows more
0:43:25 > 0:43:27about the subject than you do,
0:43:27 > 0:43:30even if you think you know about it, so be careful.
0:43:30 > 0:43:32You bullshit in there at your peril.
0:43:33 > 0:43:38There is no official dress code, but there are expectations.
0:43:38 > 0:43:42I actually... I was taken aside and I had the conversation given to me
0:43:42 > 0:43:44that, you know, I am not dressed...
0:43:44 > 0:43:47Excuse me, I think this is very smart. This is a Karen Millen top.
0:43:47 > 0:43:49They don't know who Karen Millen is.
0:43:49 > 0:43:52So what right do they have to tell me about my fashion sense?
0:43:52 > 0:43:53Look at them, come on.
0:43:53 > 0:43:56- Oh, great. Thank you very much. - Hello, sir.- Good morning.
0:43:56 > 0:43:57At Question Time,
0:43:57 > 0:44:00peers decide between themselves who gets to speak.
0:44:02 > 0:44:04It can be a free-for-all at Question Time.
0:44:04 > 0:44:06It's called self-regulation.
0:44:06 > 0:44:09But it's basically chaos most of the time.
0:44:09 > 0:44:12It seems to be a daily assertiveness test.
0:44:12 > 0:44:16It's absolutely terrifying, and the most important thing is
0:44:16 > 0:44:19to have people around you who sort of say, "You, you."
0:44:19 > 0:44:21Otherwise there's absolutely no chance.
0:44:21 > 0:44:24If a bishop stands up, on the whole, he gets priority.
0:44:24 > 0:44:26So it's a question of judging, really,
0:44:26 > 0:44:29what the right moment is for somebody to come in.
0:44:29 > 0:44:30If you time it right,
0:44:30 > 0:44:32there shouldn't be a problem.
0:44:43 > 0:44:47My Lords, as I've already been quoted on this question,
0:44:47 > 0:44:50I wonder if my noble friend...
0:44:50 > 0:44:52My Lords, is this not...
0:44:52 > 0:44:57People are shouting, "Our turn! Our turn! Sit down! Sit down!"
0:44:57 > 0:44:59And this can go on for quite a long period of time,
0:44:59 > 0:45:03until somebody gets the message that they're not going to be heard.
0:45:03 > 0:45:04My Lords...
0:45:06 > 0:45:12What effect has immigration had on the supply of affordable housing?
0:45:15 > 0:45:17My Lords...
0:45:17 > 0:45:18Order.
0:45:20 > 0:45:23My Lords, I don't have those figures to hand
0:45:23 > 0:45:25but I can go back to the department
0:45:25 > 0:45:29and see if we have those types of figures available.
0:45:29 > 0:45:32That was a baptism of fire.
0:45:32 > 0:45:35I don't think many people make the mistake that I made,
0:45:35 > 0:45:39not giving the minister the chance to reply.
0:45:39 > 0:45:41So I think that's a probably new one.
0:45:43 > 0:45:45'Somebody else took my question,
0:45:45 > 0:45:48'so I had to kind of make up a question on the spot.'
0:45:48 > 0:45:53My Lords, is it not interesting to consider
0:45:53 > 0:45:57that when Britain spends 87% of its...
0:45:57 > 0:46:02of the money that the banks give out that, in fact,
0:46:02 > 0:46:06that is one of the reasons why it's so overheated?
0:46:06 > 0:46:10And what are we going to do about reducing the heat?
0:46:10 > 0:46:15I got up at the wrong time, in between the minister speaking,
0:46:15 > 0:46:17and that threw me.
0:46:17 > 0:46:21And then I had to kind of make up a question on the spot.
0:46:21 > 0:46:23But in the end, I mean,
0:46:23 > 0:46:27the important thing is, one does it and gets it out of the way.
0:46:27 > 0:46:29And hopefully, you know...
0:46:31 > 0:46:34..I'll get it right the next time.
0:46:35 > 0:46:38Hoping her lobbying the Commons has paid off,
0:46:38 > 0:46:41Baroness King has put down an amendment
0:46:41 > 0:46:42to the Children and Social Work Bill
0:46:42 > 0:46:46to remove the cap on benefits for adopted children.
0:46:46 > 0:46:50She's about to make her case to the committee in the Lords
0:46:50 > 0:46:52which is looking at the bill.
0:46:52 > 0:46:54I feel really strongly about it
0:46:54 > 0:46:57because I know a fraction of what adoptive families go through
0:46:57 > 0:47:01and I think it is a scandal that they don't get more support.
0:47:01 > 0:47:05From my experience, and I have quite a bit of it,
0:47:05 > 0:47:08Britain relies on low income families
0:47:08 > 0:47:11to bring up our most vulnerable kids.
0:47:11 > 0:47:14Please, will the minister meet with his colleague,
0:47:14 > 0:47:16the Minister of Children and Families,
0:47:16 > 0:47:20and work out a plan to bring into force this very simple exemption
0:47:20 > 0:47:24around child benefit for all adopted children.
0:47:24 > 0:47:25I therefore beg to move.
0:47:27 > 0:47:31I would probably, you know, hang myself if I dwelt on how long
0:47:31 > 0:47:35and how much effort and how many phone calls and how many briefings
0:47:35 > 0:47:36and how many speeches you have to write
0:47:36 > 0:47:38and how many meetings you have to go to
0:47:38 > 0:47:41just to get a little bit of progress,
0:47:41 > 0:47:44which is blindingly obvious they should do anyway.
0:47:44 > 0:47:46So that's a little bit frustrating.
0:47:54 > 0:47:58It's April, and the housing bill has reached crunch point in the Lords.
0:47:58 > 0:48:01The opposition will be challenging the Government
0:48:01 > 0:48:03on its flagship policy.
0:48:03 > 0:48:05Battle lines are drawn up.
0:48:05 > 0:48:07The housing bill is very contentious.
0:48:07 > 0:48:12With it being a major bill, as it is, we can get 500 to 700 people in.
0:48:14 > 0:48:17Each party makes sure they get as many members in as they can.
0:48:18 > 0:48:21Have a good day, my Lord.
0:48:21 > 0:48:24There's just more of a general buzz and more of a vibrant atmosphere.
0:48:24 > 0:48:25All right, my Lord.
0:48:25 > 0:48:27The whip is definitely on and it's on for a really good reason,
0:48:27 > 0:48:30because we're voting on the housing bill,
0:48:30 > 0:48:32and it is just truly outrageous.
0:48:32 > 0:48:34OK, I would say that, I'm a Labour peer,
0:48:34 > 0:48:37but it is genuinely outrageous what the Government are doing,
0:48:37 > 0:48:39and people don't realise until it's too late.
0:48:39 > 0:48:41What we're literally voting on today
0:48:41 > 0:48:44is whether people are going to have council houses or not.
0:48:45 > 0:48:47Over several days, the House will
0:48:47 > 0:48:51debate a series of contentious amendments tabled by the opposition.
0:48:52 > 0:48:55If no agreement is reached, they'll be put to a vote.
0:48:56 > 0:48:59Voting does rather concentrate the mind
0:48:59 > 0:49:03because the vote is the moment when push comes to shove
0:49:03 > 0:49:07and so I think it does rather electrify the proceedings.
0:49:07 > 0:49:09Peers are on standby around the palace,
0:49:09 > 0:49:13as no-one knows if or when a vote will be called.
0:49:14 > 0:49:17We've sort of picked up a whisper that there might be eight divisions.
0:49:17 > 0:49:19- Eight?- Yes.
0:49:19 > 0:49:21We had six last night.
0:49:21 > 0:49:22Well, it's only two more.
0:49:23 > 0:49:26Sorry I can't be more helpful.
0:49:26 > 0:49:31It could mean that an awful lot of us have been hanging around,
0:49:31 > 0:49:35waiting to vote and then, in fact, there isn't a vote,
0:49:35 > 0:49:37which is very, very, very frustrating.
0:49:37 > 0:49:39All those who have done well...
0:49:39 > 0:49:43The most controversial section of the bill is "pay to stay" -
0:49:43 > 0:49:48the policy to increase the rent of higher-earning council tenants.
0:49:48 > 0:49:50A defeat on this point
0:49:50 > 0:49:53could mean an embarrassing U-turn for the Government.
0:49:53 > 0:49:57"Pay to stay" has proved the most contentious ingredient in the bill,
0:49:57 > 0:50:02because this affects hundreds of thousands of existing tenants.
0:50:02 > 0:50:05If handled insensitively...
0:50:05 > 0:50:08Crossbencher Lord Best has tabled an amendment
0:50:08 > 0:50:11to reduce the extra rent council tenants would have to pay.
0:50:13 > 0:50:15At the present stage,
0:50:15 > 0:50:18we don't know whether he's going to call it to a division.
0:50:18 > 0:50:20If there is a vote,
0:50:20 > 0:50:25we know we've got 180, 200 Conservatives on our side.
0:50:25 > 0:50:29Then the game is how many crossbenchers we can get,
0:50:29 > 0:50:31as to whether or not we can win.
0:50:33 > 0:50:35The word is going round
0:50:35 > 0:50:38that the Government and opposition can't agree,
0:50:38 > 0:50:40which means a vote.
0:50:40 > 0:50:44I've just sent an e-mail to all Conservatives
0:50:44 > 0:50:46and a text message to all Conservatives
0:50:46 > 0:50:50to say that the minister is on her feet.
0:50:50 > 0:50:53I'm sorry that the noble Baroness, the minister, has not succeeded,
0:50:53 > 0:50:55I'm afraid, in satisfying me,
0:50:55 > 0:50:58and I would like to test the opinion of the House.
0:50:58 > 0:51:00Division!
0:51:02 > 0:51:04Oh, division, here we go.
0:51:04 > 0:51:06Happy days are here again.
0:51:07 > 0:51:09BELL RINGS
0:51:18 > 0:51:21The doors get locked at the eight-minute point
0:51:21 > 0:51:24so that no more members can get into the Chamber,
0:51:24 > 0:51:27and therefore no more members can get into the division lobbies.
0:51:27 > 0:51:29So eight minutes is the limit.
0:51:29 > 0:51:33Some of them come across from some of the outbuildings where they have
0:51:33 > 0:51:37offices, so some of them have to rush to get here and make it.
0:51:37 > 0:51:42It's not a sprint but I usually put my stopwatch on.
0:51:43 > 0:51:47The attendants are really lovely but the one thing they do love to do
0:51:47 > 0:51:50is slam the door in your face and go, "Ha!"
0:51:50 > 0:51:53It's the one thing they are really allowed to do, to just go, "Stop."
0:51:57 > 0:51:59It rather looks as if this vote's a big one,
0:51:59 > 0:52:02so this will be up around 500 mark, I expect.
0:52:03 > 0:52:06When you can see over there,
0:52:06 > 0:52:10the people queueing to get in to the wrong...
0:52:10 > 0:52:14to the Content Lobby, that's not a good sign.
0:52:18 > 0:52:20If the vote goes against the Government,
0:52:20 > 0:52:23it will have to reconsider its policy.
0:52:25 > 0:52:28We are an unelected House.
0:52:28 > 0:52:31We have no inherent rights.
0:52:31 > 0:52:33All we can do is put our hands up to the Government and say,
0:52:33 > 0:52:36"Please think again."
0:52:51 > 0:52:53My Lords, there have voted
0:52:53 > 0:52:55Contents 281,
0:52:55 > 0:52:58Not-Contents 179.
0:52:58 > 0:53:00So the Contents have it.
0:53:01 > 0:53:04We lost by 102.
0:53:04 > 0:53:09So not good news for us
0:53:09 > 0:53:13because we've got another four or five votes this afternoon.
0:53:15 > 0:53:17During the five-day hearing,
0:53:17 > 0:53:20the Government and Lords clash repeatedly
0:53:20 > 0:53:23and the Government suffers a series of damaging defeats.
0:53:25 > 0:53:27I've made my first vote!
0:53:27 > 0:53:31Today is about the Lords doing what the Lords are supposed to do,
0:53:31 > 0:53:33that is saying to the government of the day,
0:53:33 > 0:53:35"You haven't thought it through well enough.
0:53:35 > 0:53:37"Don't ruin people's lives
0:53:37 > 0:53:39"because you haven't given it enough thought."
0:53:39 > 0:53:43I hope it means that the Government is going to think about why it lost,
0:53:43 > 0:53:45and shouldn't it change some of the policies?
0:53:45 > 0:53:48I think it's given the Government a bit of a shock.
0:53:57 > 0:54:02A peerage might be for life but Baroness King is taking a break.
0:54:02 > 0:54:06She's been offered a job in California, working for YouTube.
0:54:06 > 0:54:08Hello.
0:54:08 > 0:54:11The House will lose one of its youngest and most active members...
0:54:11 > 0:54:12for now.
0:54:12 > 0:54:15But I gather that you've had enough of us. That's it.
0:54:15 > 0:54:17Can't stand it here any more?
0:54:17 > 0:54:20It's a little bit of that. You know what it's like
0:54:20 > 0:54:24hanging around Parliament for too many decades. I've done two.
0:54:24 > 0:54:25Well, we're going to miss you...
0:54:25 > 0:54:27- in some respects. - I was going to say,
0:54:27 > 0:54:30you're not going to miss what I wear, normally.
0:54:30 > 0:54:32Did you notice that I'm actually wearing a frock for you
0:54:32 > 0:54:33and no trainers?
0:54:33 > 0:54:36- Cos you have had a few issues. - I have never...
0:54:36 > 0:54:39- Who was it complained? - I have never said anything.
0:54:39 > 0:54:40Thank you so much.
0:54:40 > 0:54:43- Best of luck.- Thank you. - I'll see you in September.
0:54:43 > 0:54:46'Baroness King leaving, in a way that doesn't surprise me at all.
0:54:46 > 0:54:49'She's given 20 years to Parliament.'
0:54:49 > 0:54:51I think it's rather good that people can, you know,
0:54:51 > 0:54:53take a career break from the House of Lords
0:54:53 > 0:54:55and go off and do other things.
0:54:58 > 0:55:01The housing bill has now been signed into law.
0:55:03 > 0:55:06Following the overwhelming defeat in the Lords,
0:55:06 > 0:55:09the Government has abandoned its "pay to stay" policy.
0:55:11 > 0:55:15Some Conservatives fear the Lords have gone too far
0:55:15 > 0:55:17and are playing with fire.
0:55:18 > 0:55:23Sometimes people come here and think that they can
0:55:23 > 0:55:25overturn an elected government,
0:55:25 > 0:55:27and they can't and they shouldn't
0:55:27 > 0:55:30and they need to be disabused of that view.
0:55:30 > 0:55:34We must be very careful not to overstep the mark
0:55:34 > 0:55:39and start to get into a battle with the House of Commons,
0:55:39 > 0:55:42where we stop to...
0:55:42 > 0:55:47or fail to recognise that they must always have the final say.
0:55:49 > 0:55:53Before she leaves, Baroness King has some good news.
0:55:53 > 0:55:57The Government is going to accept my amendment
0:55:57 > 0:56:03so that adopted children will always receive child benefit.
0:56:03 > 0:56:06It's a privilege to be able to influence debate,
0:56:06 > 0:56:10and when you can say, "OK, I didn't just influence the debate,
0:56:10 > 0:56:13"but the law will now change," it's amazing.
0:56:13 > 0:56:16For a politician, it's the best feeling in the world.
0:56:16 > 0:56:18I apologise to my husband, you know,
0:56:18 > 0:56:21but this is the best feeling in the world.
0:56:30 > 0:56:35It is very strange to be leaving Parliament after 20 years.
0:56:35 > 0:56:39And now it's time to take black Margaret Thatcher off the wall.
0:56:39 > 0:56:41She must come to America.
0:56:41 > 0:56:44Oh, African Americans will love that.
0:56:44 > 0:56:48I think it's time to put Maggie back in her crate. God bless her.
0:56:48 > 0:56:53It will be a liberation of sorts to be able to go and work in a sector
0:56:53 > 0:56:56where they move at the speed of light, in Silicon Valley.
0:56:56 > 0:56:58It will be the polar opposite, in some respects...
0:56:58 > 0:57:00in some respects, to the House of Lords.
0:57:00 > 0:57:04So I'd be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to that side of it
0:57:04 > 0:57:06but I will definitely miss the Lords.
0:57:22 > 0:57:25Next time, the battle between Lords and Government
0:57:25 > 0:57:27goes right to the top...
0:57:27 > 0:57:29There we are.
0:57:29 > 0:57:31The whole Parliamentary estate all laid out below us.
0:57:31 > 0:57:35..and tensions between Lords and Commons reach breaking point.
0:57:35 > 0:57:37Come on, the Lords!
0:57:37 > 0:57:43If there was an attempt to nobble us, neutralise us, make us impotent,
0:57:43 > 0:57:47the Lords would not go down without a fight.
0:57:47 > 0:57:49There is a degree of doubt as to
0:57:49 > 0:57:52how far either side is going to take the game of poker.
0:57:54 > 0:57:57Are you interested in finding out more about the House of Lords
0:57:57 > 0:58:00and the role it plays in the UK's political system?
0:58:00 > 0:58:04Go to...
0:58:04 > 0:58:07and follow the links to the Open University.