Rishi Sunak is facing pressure to block the former prime minister’s “conveyor belt” after Johnson told Tory MPs to stop heading to the Lords until the end of the current parliament so the party does not face a series of potentially difficult elections challenges. . The extremely loyal Nadine Dorries, the former culture secretary. Alok Sharma, the president of Cop26. Alistair Jack, the Scottish Secretary. and Nigel Adams is set to be on Johnson’s resignation list. Sean Bailey, the former London mayoral candidate who faced backlash for attending a Christmas party during the lockdown, is also said to be on the former prime minister’s shortlist. Johnson’s former chief of staff, Dan Rosenfield. deputy Ben Gascoigne; councilor Ross Kempsell, 30; and Charlotte Owen, believed to be in her 20s, will take seats at Lords. Kempsell and Owen are set to become the youngest peers ever. Deputy Labor leader Angela Rayner urged Sunak to block Johnson’s “disingenuous demands”. “This disgraceful plot by the former Prime Minister to avoid democracy by trying to reward his MP lackeys with promised jobs for life in the House of Lords is once again putting the interests of the Tory party above the interests of the public,” he said. “This sneaky attempt to game the system by installing a conveyor belt of relatives and skewing parliament in favor of the Tories for decades to come should never see the light of day. “Rishi Sunak should make it clear in no uncertain terms that he will refuse to do Boris Johnson’s bidding and reject his outrageous demands.” Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Street has backed the Lords’ reforms, including its increased size, but Downing Street has said changes are not a priority for the government. The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “The House of Lords plays an important and valuable role in scrutinizing and reviewing legislation. We are committed to looking at the role of the Lords, but it must be carefully considered in the round. “Further reform is not an immediate priority as we deal with some of the issues facing the UK.” Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. While Lords Speaker John McFall does not comment on individual candidates for peerage, he has previously called for a tougher vetting process for those entering the Upper House. In a letter to the SNP earlier this year about another controversial Johnson peerage, to his friend Yevgeny Lebedev, the newspaper owner, McFall said “there was a case for a review of the appointments process, including a stronger vetting system”. . McFaul’s predecessor as speaker, former Conservative minister Norman Fowler, was more forthright, saying the room was too big, with too many “passengers” contributing little. The Lords currently has 773 sitting members, making it the second largest legislature in the world after China’s National People’s Congress.
