Lola Young, Baroness Young of Hornsey, is the latest guest on Lord Speaker’s Corner. In this episode, Baroness Young speaks to Lord McFall of Alcluith about her work tackling modern slavery, race and inequality in the creative sector, and why consumers should challenge companies to do better when they source materials. Baroness Young has extensive experience telling truth to power. From challenging the workplace dress code of her employer in 1971, to pushing for representation as an actor, to...

Should Mars be our plan(et) B?Should we continue with manned spaceflight? Hear from the Astronomer Royal, Lord Rees of Ludlow, in the latest episode of Lord Speaker’s Corner. ‘Now that robots can do the things that humans were needed for 50 years ago, the case for sending people is getting weaker all the time.’   In this episode, Martin Rees - astrophysicist, former President of the Royal Society, and now Lord Rees of Ludlow and Astronomer Royal – explains to Lord McFall of Alcluith that he...

Peter Mandelson - former Cabinet minister, leading figure in New Labour and now Lord Mandelson - speaks to Lord McFall of Alcluith about his life in politics. ‘Born into the Labour Party’, Lord Mandelson began a career of campaigning at school, where he was reprimanded by his grammar school headteacher for advocating for comprehensive education. ‘It was very difficult in the 1980s. It made me, of course wonder whether I could ever be a Member of Parliament… And that's when I discovered the...

Former top diplomat Lord Ricketts speaks to Lord McFall of Alcluith about the conflicts in Israel/Gaza and Ukraine, the impact of Brexit and more in this episode of Lord Speaker’s Corner. Peter Ricketts, an expert in international relations and now a crossbench member of the House of Lords, has previously served as the UK’s ambassador to France and representative to Nato. He has been chair of the Joint Intelligence Committee, was the UK’s first national security adviser and the most senior...

Lord Lamont talks tackling inflation, controlling interest rates and growing up in Shetland in the latest episode of Lord Speaker’s Corner. ‘Although I personally would not have joined the ERM and although I personally didn't think it was a disaster when we had to leave, I think the period we were in the ERM for two years did actually do the economy a huge amount of good.’ Norman Lamont, now Lord Lamont of Lerwick, was Chancellor of the Exchequer in the early 90s, and was responsible for...

Hear from Lord Forsyth as he warns of a 'presidential' style of government that he believes has weakened Parliament’s role in scrutinising and improving laws. 'The House of Commons is failing in its function. It’s just abandoned its function of considering legislation properly.' In this new episode of Lord Speaker's Corner, Lord Forsyth tells Lord McFall of Alcluith that he wants to see 'root and branch' reform to cut the use of time-limits on debates and prevent overuse of secondary...

'I think I've learned from all of the campaigns, a simple message gets through, complex messages don't.' Baroness Finlay of Llandaff is a leading doctor, a professor and pioneer in the field of palliative care. 'Always wanting to change the world', Baroness Finlay has often been ahead of the curve in campaigning for change on topics such as smoking, organ donation and protecting young people. Hear about her work in medicine and in the Lords in this episode of Lord Speaker's Corner. 'The...

Lord McFall of Alcluith speaks to former Home Secretary David Blunkett - Lord Blunkett - about his 36-year career in Parliament in the latest episode of Lord Speaker's Corner. 'We anticipated there might be a second attack, particularly on the City of London.' In this episode, Lord Blunkett discusses a range of topics including the government's immediate response to the tragic events of 9/11, clashing with the Lords over measures introduced post the attacks and how his opinion of the second...

Hear from broadcaster and campaigner, Floella Benjamin, in the latest episode of Lord Speaker's Corner. In this episode, Baroness Benjamin explains that it was while presenting TV’s Play School in the 1970s and 1980s that she first realised that 'children didn't have a voice… People didn't take what's going to happen to children into consideration enough.' She has gone on to play a significant role advocating for children's rights. In this extensive interview, Baroness Benjamin also shares...

Hear from former Deputy Prime Minister, Michael Heseltine, as he speaks to the Lord Speaker about an extensive political career spanning almost 60 years in Westminster. 'Liverpool changed me. There's no doubt in my mind.' Talking about his career in Parliament, Lord Heseltine said he hoped his involvement in the regeneration of Merseyside after the 1981 riots would stand as his political legacy. He told Lord McFall that one of the most moving moments of his life came when he was offered the...

Baroness Butler-Sloss, the highest-ranking female judge in England and Wales as President of the High Court’s Family Division from 1999-2005, speaks to Lord McFall of Alcluith about her career and warns of moving away from parliamentary scrutiny in draft laws before the House. ‘There’s been a creep, a distinct creep, in the last 10 - and possibly mainly the last five - years to move away from parliamentary scrutiny. It’s not just the Lords, it’s parliamentary scrutiny. I remember talking to...

Watch leading human rights lawyer, Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws, discuss human rights, social media and access to justice with Lord McFall of Alcluith in the latest episode of Lord Speaker's Corner.   'I was challenging the state, and often taking on the state, because of abuses by arms of the state, by police, by immigration authorities… And that is the purpose of law. That is what the rule of law is all about.'   In this new episode, campaigning barrister Helena Kennedy KC talks about her...

This month we speak to chairs of two new Lords committees looking into the use of artificial intelligence in weapons systems and the future of the horticultural sector. Plus, Lord Bird discusses his upbringing and how he campaigns in the House of Lords for a new way to deal with the problem of poverty. ‘There are things that we wish we'd never invented like nuclear weapons, like landmines, but they've been invented... autonomous weapons systems are potentially threatening, but also a big...

From making movies for Stephen Spielberg to ground-breaking protections for young people online, Beeban Kidron - Baroness Kidron - talks to Lord McFall of Alcluith about her wide-ranging work as a filmmaker and campaigner. In this new interview, Baroness Kidron reveals what inspired her to become a filmmaker and her experiences making television and films including Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit and To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything! Julie Newmar. 'When the data bill came into the Lords, I...

Nicky Morgan, Baroness Morgan of Cotes, has been a member of the government in both Houses of Parliament as well as serving as a backbencher, has chaired the Lords Fraud Act 2006 and Digital Fraud Committee and most recently led the external UK Commission on Covid Commemoration. In this wide-ranging interview, Baroness Morgan explains what inspired her to get into politics, who asks the hardest questions to ministers, and explains her current focus, including on convincing government to make...

How should the curriculum for 11-16 year olds be reformed and should GCSEs remain? How can health services and community care be work better together? Hear from members on these topics and more in the latest episode of the House of Lords Podcast. First up we speak to the Senior Deputy Speaker, Lord Gardiner of Kimble, about how committees function in the House of Lords and his experiences as both a minister and in his current role. Next we speak to Baroness Pitkeathley, Chair of the new...

‘In the House of Commons there's a culture of assertion. Government knows it'll normally get its way. In the House of Lords, it's a culture of justification. So government's got to persuade the rest of the House that what it wants to achieve it is desirable. So ministers have to engage. They can't simply rely on their own side to get a measure through.’ In this third episode of Lord Speaker's Corner, Lord McFall of Alcluith speaks to constitutional expert and Professor of Government at the...

Introducing a special series from the House of Lords: Lord Speaker's Corner. Over five episodes, Lord McFall of Alcluith will speak to members of the Lords about what drives them and what they hope to achieve in the House. In this first episode, the Lord Speaker sits down with Lord Dubs: ‘I think it's possible in the House of Lords to achieve things. And there's no point in being here unless one sets out to do that.’ Speaking shortly after Lord Dubs’ 90th birthday, the Lord Speaker discusses...

This month we speak to two members who have been leading investigations into improving adult social care and how the government has incompletely implemented the Children and Families Act. ‘A gloriously ordinary life’‘We cannot keep asking families and friends to step up and take more and more responsibility for the adult social care services, while denying them some basic rights in terms of fair benefits and fair access to work.’ First, we speak to Baroness Andrews, who has been chairing the...

How do you know what a member said in the House of Lords, or Commons?   And did you know that you could once be arrested for reporting what was happening in Parliament?   In this month’s episode of the House of Lords Podcast, we meet the team behind the Official Report, known as Hansard, who ensure written proceedings are made available and accessible to the public each sitting day.   We hear about everything from the history of Hansard, why you might hear ‘can I have some ears please?’ in...

Did you know that it’s not just the government that can propose new laws in Parliament? This month we are looking at how members campaign for change via private members’ bills. These are bills that can be introduced by any member of the House of Lords, who is not a government minister, to change the law. Amy and Matt speak to Lord Farmer, Baroness Finlay of Llandaff and Lord Wills about their bills, covering subjects from child benefit to preventing suicide to creating an advocate for the...

In this month’s House of Lords podcast we talk to Labour’s Angela Smith, Baroness Smith of Basildon and Conservative peer Nicky Morgan, Baroness Morgan of Cotes. First up, we hear from Baroness Morgan about the new Lords committee investigating how we tackle digital fraud, how you can get involved in the committee’s work and what former minister Lord Agnew of Oulton told the committee about the government’s work on fraud. ‘This was chosen as the topic because of the scale of fraud. It now...

This month, we hear from Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate why the House of Lords is the best place for checking draft laws, his experiences as a whip and as a rebel, plus updating the Queen on what’s happening in Parliament. ‘This is a bit like Deja-vu, this particular legislation’ Lord Kirkhope also explains why he is putting forward changes to the Nationality and Borders Bill based upon his experience as a former immigration minister. ‘It is House of Lords, which in my opinion, and from my...