Curtain call for Lloyd Webber’s House of Lords career
ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER, the man behind Evita and The Phantom of the Opera, has quit the House of Lords to focus on theatrical commitments.
The Conservative life peer wrote in a letter to the Clerk of Parliament that someone who is able to devote more time than him should be handed the role instead.
He was awarded his peerage in 1997 by John Major, the then prime minister, but has only voted 42 times and said last night that the demands of the upper chamber had since changed.
Recently, Lord Lloyd-webber, who will retain his title, drew criticism for voting through tax credit cuts. Prior to that he intervened in the gay marriage debate, of which he spoke in favour.
His letter stated his intention to resign from the Chamber at midnight yesterday. It read: “I have been privileged to be a member of the House for 20 years and resign with a heavy heart, but in the knowledge that what is expected from a member today is very different from what it was when I joined in 1997.
“I have a work schedule stretching ahead of me that is the busiest of my career to date. This means it would be impossible for me to regularly vote or properly consider the vitally important issues that the House of Lords will face as a consequence of Brexit.
“I feel my place should be taken by someone who can devote the time that the current situation dictates.”
Two of the composer’s shows are touring America while others are being performed on Broadway. He has an autobiography out in the spring to coincide with his 70th birthday.
♦ A Lords committee is expected to recommend future peerages be limited to 15 years as part of plans to reduce the size of the chamber, which now stands at 800. It will report later this month.