14 named examples with their significance, drawn from the Panther database. Read them, then test yourself.
In test mode, tap an example to reveal why it matters.
The examples
128 Lords defeats in 2021-22 session (more than the 126 defeats under Wilson in 1975-76)(2021)(tap to reveal)- Use to show the Lords remains constitutionally significant as a check on the Commons. The record number of defeats under Johnson - a PM with an 80-seat majority - demonstrates that Lords scrutiny is more than symbolic. Analytically: the Lords' willingness to defeat a government with a large Commons majority supports the argument that it retains real legislative power. Contrast with the view that defeats are routinely overturned under the Parliament Acts.
House of Lords Act 1999: 700+ Hereditary Peers Removed, 92 Retained(2024)(tap to reveal)- The House of Lords Act 1999 removed the right of all but 92 hereditary peers to sit and vote in the Lords. Before the Act, over 700 hereditary peers were entitled to sit. The 92 were retained as a temporary compromise pending further reform (the Wakeham Commission had been appointed to recommend a permanent solution). The Commission reported in 2000 but its recommendations for an elected or partly-elected chamber were never implemented. The Lords therefore remained a fully appointed/hereditary chamber from 1999 until Labour's 2024 removal of the remaining 92 hereditary peers (Lords Hereditary Peers Act 2024). The 25-year gap between the 1999 'temporary' compromise and its resolution illustrates how difficult Lords reform has been.
House of Lords Hereditary Peers Act (2024)(2024)(tap to reveal)- Labour removed 92 remaining hereditary peers from Lords in 2024. First stage of Lords reform. Lords now entirely appointed. Raises questions about democratic legitimacy vs expertise. Use for Lords reform debates.
Lord Lebedev and Baroness Owen: PM Patronage (2020/2023)(2023)(tap to reveal)- Johnson appointed Evgeny Lebedev (media proprietor) to Lords despite security concerns. Baroness Owen introduced Automated Vehicles Bill as a new peer. Shows PM patronage power and lack of accountability in appointments.
Lords Reform Bill 2024-25: Removal of Hereditary Peers(2024)(tap to reveal)- The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill 2024-25 will remove the remaining 92 hereditary peers from the House of Lords, the most significant Lords reform since the 1999 Act.
Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949: Establishing Commons Supremacy over Lords(2000)(tap to reveal)- The Parliament Act 1911 removed the Lords' power to block money bills (requiring only one month for Lords approval) and reduced delaying power for other legislation from an absolute veto to a two-session delay. It also reduced the maximum length of a Parliament from seven to five years. The Parliament Act 1949 reduced the delaying power further to one session (approximately one year). The Acts were used rarely but notably to pass the War Crimes Act 1991 and the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000 over Lords objection. Most importantly, they created the constitutional framework within which the convention of Lords non-opposition to manifesto commitments operates.
Welfare Reform Bill 2025: Backbench Rebellion and Lords Defeats(2025)(tap to reveal)- 150+ Labour MPs threatened rebellion; 13 Lords defeats; major government concessions on disability benefit cuts
Baroness Doreen Lawrence (2013): Functional Representation in the Lords(2013)(tap to reveal)- Mother of Stephen Lawrence (murdered 1993). Drove the campaign that produced the Macpherson Report 1999. Made a Labour life peer in 2013 as Baroness Lawrence of Clarendon. Continues to speak on race equality, police accountability and institutional racism, including in the wake of the 2023 Casey Review.
Hunting Act 2004: Parliament Acts Used Against Lords(2004)(tap to reveal)- Hunting Act 2004 passed using Parliament Acts after Lords blocked it twice; most recent use of Parliament Acts
Lord Alf Dubs and the Dubs Amendment (2016)(2016)(tap to reveal)- Alf Dubs is a Labour life peer (created 1994) and former Kindertransport child who fled Czechoslovakia in 1939. In 2016 he sponsored an amendment to Theresa May's Immigration Act 2016 requiring the government to take in unaccompanied refugee children from Europe. The amendment passed the Lords twice before the government accepted it in May 2016. The scheme was capped at 480 children in 2017 and ended in 2018.
Nationality and Borders Bill parliamentary ping-pong (2021-22): Lords defeated government 14 times; Commons overturned all 14(2021)(tap to reveal)- Use to illustrate the limits of Lords power: despite repeated defeats, the elected Commons asserted primacy and overturned every Lords amendment. Analytically: this supports the view that Lords defeats are a delaying mechanism rather than a genuine veto. For AO3 evaluation, use against the 128-defeats statistic - the quantity of defeats matters less than whether they are sustained. Useful for 'How far does Parliament effectively scrutinise the executive?' questions.
Retained EU Law Act 2023: Henry VIII Powers and Parliamentary Pushback(2023)(tap to reveal)- Original bill gave ministers power to revoke all EU-derived law by SI; scope narrowed after parliamentary opposition; Lords defeated government multiple times
Rwanda and Parliamentary Sovereignty vs Courts (2022-24)(2025)(tap to reveal)- Supreme Court ruled Rwanda policy unlawful (15 Nov 2023). Government passed Safety of Rwanda Act 2024 to override. Lords inserted ten amendments in early 2024 forcing months of ping-pong with Commons; Bill eventually passed Apr 2024. Shows tension between parliamentary sovereignty and judicial review, and the Lords as a delaying chamber.
The Assisted Dying Bill (2024-26)(2024)(tap to reveal)- 330-275 second reading. First ever Commons vote to pass on assisted dying. 1000+ Lords amendments. Shows free votes allow parliamentary autonomy. Ongoing - update as bill progresses through Lords.