Peers why election is so farcical
Earl wins Lords seat...with seven votes
THE Earl of Devon won a lifetime seat in the Lords yesterday with just seven votes in an election slammed as a “mockery of our democracy”.
Charles Peregrine Courtenay, 42, can now vote on laws and claim £300 a day until he dies or quits.
The Old Etonian was one of 19 aristocrats standing in a by-election for a hereditary crossbench peer – meaning only 31 peers could vote in it.
The Electoral Reform Society’s Darren Hughes said: “These so-called by-elections are an undemocratic farce and make a mockery of our democracy.” Lords Labour leader Angela Smith said: “Hereditary by-elections have had their day. It is clear the Lords wants to see the back of them.” The bizarre system is a hangover from Tony Blair’s Lords modernisation bid. He mostly abolished inherited peerages in 1999 but let 92 stay as a compromise. When one dies or retires, those booted out in 1999 get first refusal on the seat. The Earl lives at Powderham Castle, Devon, which has 3,000 acres, a deer park and a forge. In his candidacy statement, he referred to his castle as an “800-year-old family SME (small or medium-sized enterprise)”.