Lords ministers need greater support

Lords ministers rarely attract much attention. They typically only get air time if they had a high profile before entering the Upper House (like the former MP and London mayoral candidate Lord Goldsmith), or if they hold a senior role in the cabinet (like Lord Mandelson or, more recently, Baroness Morgan). Or when things go wrong. Sometimes, circumstances can throw a Lords minister  into the limelight, as has happened to the current junior health minister and ‘lead’ on coronavirus testing, Lord Bethell.

But all too often, Lords ministers are largely ignored – by their ministerial colleagues, civil servants and the media. This is despite the vital role that they play in government. The IfG is trying to fill this gap by offering support for new ministers. A new paper published today, Becoming a Lords Minister draws on previous ministers’ experiences from our Ministers Reflect archive to help new Lords ministers understand what the job involves – and outlines the need for greater support.

Lords ministers have a vast workload

Lords ministers in major departments are asked to respond to vastly more questions than their Commons counterparts, across a wider range of issues. There is often only one Lords minister per department (far fewer than in the Commons, where each department has numerous junior ministers), though they are supported by government whips – who themselves have to work across several departments. Lords ministers have to represent the whole of their department’s work in the upper chamber and be across all policy in their department.

The questions they face are often detailed, due to the level of expertise in the Lords, and equally detailed responses are expected. Preparing for questions can take up a lot of time – one former minister put the ratio at eight hours’ preparation for eight minutes of questions – which requires thorough briefing by civil servants.

On top of this, Lords ministers have to take their department’s legislation through with little support. This can mean long hours, and late nights, in the Upper House, where legislation is not timetabled in the same way as the Commons. Because governments don’t always have a majority in the Lords, defeat is more likely, making time-consuming parliamentary management all the more important. Lords ministers must fit these duties in the House around their work in the department, making the support of their private offices key.

Some new ministers have little or no experience of the Lords

Lords ministers also have to get used to the Upper House. It is not uncommon for those appointed from outside politics – like Lord Myners, appointed as a minister in the Treasury amid the 2007/08 financial crisis after a career in the private sector – to be given a peerage to enable them to become a minister. Getting to grips with government and the Lords at the same time is not always easy: Myners called his first day in the House “one of the most humiliating days of my life”.  

Even those who have previously worked in the Commons, as ministers or MPs, can find the unique culture and procedure of the Upper House tricky to adjust to. Getting this right matters. When Lord Bates, an international development minister, arrived late to respond to a parliamentary question he felt compelled to offer to resign due to his “discourtesy”. Respect for procedure is important – as is acknowledgement of the Lords’ more collegiate atmosphere, where overt displays of party politics are less the norm.

Lords ministers are often neglected by ministerial colleagues and officials

New or less experienced Lords ministers need the help of their civil servants, as well as their ministerial colleagues, in getting this right. This might be in preparing for debates, getting answers to policy questions covered by other ministers in their departments, or simply being ‘plugged in’ to what is going on in the department.

But former ministers have often found that they are overlooked by those around them. Civil servants focus more on the Commons when it comes to parliamentary business, often showing less awareness of the unique nature of the role of Lords ministers. And although Commons ministers do not often regard their Lords colleagues as a political threat, this doesn’t necessarily lead to better joint working. One former minister found that: “The amount of time spent considering how something is going to go down in the Lords is inappropriately small.”

In spite of these obstacles, Lords ministers can still have an impact, and help take forward the government’s agenda. But many former holders of the title highlight the need for better support from officials, particularly for new appointees, in being able to do so. The IfG will continue its work with new ministers, and encourages others – in the government and civil service – to think more about the support they can offer.