An anti-Brexit peer just accused the Tories of trying to “seize control of the state”

Andrew Adonis pulled no punches when quizzing the Government on disproportionately increasing the number of Conservative peers.

While everyone was glued to their screens watching the royal wedding this weekend, Prime Minister Theresa May was busy appointing nine new Conservative MPs. But if she thought the fact would go unnoticed, she was wrong.

Labour peer Andrew Adonis, who has spearheaded many of the Government’s defeats on Brexit in the House of Lords, was granted an urgent question on the matter this afternoon.

And Lord Adonis did not hold back, pointing out that “as a minority Government, the Conservatives have 63 more peers than Labour.”

Labour last left government with an excess of 26 peers compared to the Tories.

Lord Adonis had to address the Cabinet Office spokesman Lord Young, as the Leader of the House of Lords, Baroness Evans of Bowes Park was absent from the hearing.

The Labour peer said: 

“Does the noble lord agree that this is a clear and flagrant breach of the constitution?”

Later adding:

“Can I ask him, when the Prime Minister said Brexit was about taking back control, did she mean the Conservative Party seizing control of the state in the interests of the Conservative Party alone?”

The growth in Tory and DUP peers has been viewed with extreme suspicion by all other Westminster parties, after Theresa May’s Brexit Bill found itself amended no fewer than 14 times by the House of Lords.

Lord Young replied that there was “no constitutional concept that there has to be some degree of parity” between the parties of Government and Opposition inside the House of Lords. He also insisted May had shown “commendable restraint.” No party has a majority in the Upper House, but the Conservatives are now in a stronger position with 253 out of the 780 total of peers.

Among those honoured with a peerage were former cabinet ministers Sir Eric Pickles and Peter Lilley.

Joana Ramiro is a reporter for Left Foot Forward. You can follow her on Twitter for all sorts of rants here

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