On January 19, 1999, Tony Blair's government announced the most radical restructuring of the House of Lords, the UK's second chamber, in its 600-year existence. Honoring the Labour Party election manifesto, the Bill will remove all 759 hereditary peers, those with an automatic right to sit by virtue of birthright, within the year. In the meantime, a Royal Commission will formulate proposals for a...

On January 19, 1999, Tony Blair's government announced the most radical restructuring of the House of Lords, the UK's second chamber, in its 600-year existence. Honoring the Labour Party election manifesto, the Bill will remove all 759 hereditary peers, those with an automatic right to sit by virtue of birthright, within the year. In the meantime, a Royal Commission will formulate proposals for a...