[andrewb]

An elected House of Lords would be terrible for British democracy. For hundreds of years the public have been in no doubt about who is to blame or congratulate for the path our country has taken. Clear majorities in the House of Commons have always given the public a clear view of who to hold accountable.

An elected House of Lords muddies that view. No longer will the public be able to hold government properly accountable and boot them from office, as it will never be clear who is to blame, with both houses blaming the other. Democracy is about accountability with representation. Currently it is very easy and simple to hold government accountable.

As a side note, the House of Lords does a better job at scrutinising legislation than the Commons does. It often recommends amendments the Commons had never thought of, yet are crucial to good legislation. The cost of the Lords is less than 1/4 that of the Commons. Adding another paid tier of government to get second rate party hacks, rather than those with expertise in the areas of legislation they scrutinise, would be a terrible route to go down during the current economic climate. I suspect the government are only finally proposing these ideas 13 years after they've had chance to implement, simply to avoid having this debate with the electorate, avoid giving them the pros and cons, as there are far more important issues on the agenda. Sorting out our economy should be their aim, not muddying the water.