Support for House of Lords Reform 1977-1998
Q I am going to read out a list of statements which some people have made about a variety of things concerning people in Britain today. Please would you tell me, in each case, whether on balance you agree or disagree with each one. The House of Lords should be abolished
| 25-26 October 1977 | |
|---|---|
| % | |
| Agree | 27 |
| Disagree | 54 |
| No opinion/neither of these | 19 |
Base: 899 GB adults aged 18+
Q I am going to read out to you a number of policies that some people would like the next government to adopt. For each one I would like you to tell me whether you support or oppose this policy. Remove the power of the House of Lords to delay or veto decisions of the House of Commons
| 16-17 April 1979 | 23 May 1983 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | ||
| Support | 31 | 24 | |
| Oppose | 40 | 47 | |
| Net support | 28 | 29 | |
Base: c. 1,000 GB adults aged 18+
Q Now I am going to read out a number of policies, and I would like you to tell me, from this card, whether you support or oppose each*. Replacing the House of Lords with an elected second chamber
| 7-25 March 1991 | 21 April- 8 May 1995 | 23-24 April 1997 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | |
| Strongly support | 17 | 19 | n/a |
| Tend to support | 23 | 24 | n/a |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 23 | 23 | n/a |
| Tend to support | 19 | 15 | n/a |
| Strongly support | 10 | 9 | n/a |
| Don't know | 8 | 11 | 27 |
| Support | 40 | 43 | 44 |
| Oppose | 29 | 24 | 29 |
| Net support | +11 | +19 | +15 |
*Q wording in 1997: "On balance, do you support or oppose each of the following?..." Base: c. 1,000-2,000 GB adults aged 18+
Q I am going to read out a series of changes that a government might propose in the future, and I would like you to tell me to what extent you support or oppose each. Remove the right of hereditary peers to vote in the House of Lords, so that only life peers had a vote
| 20-23 January 1995 | 25-28 April 1997 | |
|---|---|---|
| % | % | |
| Strongly agree | 20 | 21 |
| Tend to agree | 27 | 26 |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 19 | 22 |
| Tend to disagree | 14 | 12 |
| Strongly disagree | 7 | 8 |
| Don't know | 13 | 10 |
| Agree | 47 | 47 |
| Disagree | 21 | 20 |
| Net agree | +26 | +27 |
Base: c. 1,000-2,000 GB adults aged 18+
Q The Government is currently considering the future of the House of Lords. At present the House of Lords consists partly of hereditary peers, who have inherited the right to sit from their ancestors, and partly of life peers appointed by the Prime Minister of the day. In your opinion, which one of these would be the best option for the future of the House of Lords?
| 17-21 July 1998 | 23-26 October 1998 | |
|---|---|---|
| % | % | |
| Keep things as they are | 21 | 20 |
| Remove the hereditary peers, with all new peers nominated by the government | 11 | 13 |
| Replace the House of Lords with a new second chamber partly elected by the public and partly nominated by the government | 23 | 23 |
| Replace the House of Lords with a new second chamber entirely elected by the public | 25 | 24 |
| Abolish the House of Lords altogether | 12 | 12 |
| Other | 1 | n/a |
| None of these | 1 | n/a |
| Don't know | 6 | n/a |
| No opinion/none of these | n/a | 8 |
Base: c. 900 GB adults aged 18+
Q As you may know, the Government has decided to introduce major reforms to the House of Lords. It has already decided in principle to remove hereditary peers, but it has not yet settled the other details. If you had to choose between these two options, which one do you think would be better?
| 23-26 October 1998 | |
|---|---|
| % | |
| Abolish hereditary peers now before deciding on the other details of the reforms | 28 |
| Leave things as they are for the moment until all the details of the reforms have been decided | 61 |
| No opinion/neither of these | 11 |
Base: 899 GB adults aged 18+
