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What does the House of Lords do?

An introduction to the House of Lords

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The House of Lords is the second chamber of the UK Parliament. It is independent from, and complements the work of, the elected House of Commons. The Lords shares the task of making and shaping laws and checking and challenging the work of the government.

The Lords has three main roles:

Making laws

Members spend more than half their time in the House considering bills (draft laws). All bills have to be considered by both Houses of Parliament before they can become law. During several stages, members examine each bill, line-by-line, before it becomes an Act of Parliament (actual law). Many of these bills affect our everyday lives, covering areas such as welfare, health and education.

Find out more about the journey of a bill through the Lords

In-depth consideration of public policy

Members use their extensive individual experience to investigate public policy. Much of this work is done in select committees - small groups appointed to consider specific policy areas. Committee meetings are open to the public.

There were 603 committee meetings in 2023-24 and over 2,800 people from outside the Lords had their say in inquiries. They included Chris van Tulleken, TV doctor and author of 'Ultra-Processed People' and Andrew Neil, presenter and former chairman of The Spectator. Committees also questioned ministers including then Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton and Chancellor Jeremy Hunt.

House of Lords committees published 57 reports on topics ranging from water regulation to AI in weapons, and from secondary education to the implications of the war in Ukraine for UK defence. 

Holding government to account

Between November 2023 and May 2024, the House of Lords considered 2,377 changes to 67 bills. Members raised concerns, pressed government for action and questioned decisions with debates, daily oral questions and urgent questions in over 780 hours of business. Topics included the Post Office Horizon scandal, support for carers, pollution in rivers, and sending asylum seekers to Rwanda.

The public is welcome to visit and sit in the galleries overlooking the chamber during business.

What has the Lords changed?

Making a difference in recent years, the House of Lords has persuaded the government to make policy changes on a diverse range of issues. These include:

  • criminalising intimidation or harassment aggravated by hostility towards a victim's sex or gender
  • making a new offence for photographing breastfeeding in public without permission
  • making it illegal to have sex-for-rental accommodation
  • reducing single use items
  • reducing the impact of raw sewage discharges into rivers and coastal waters
  • giving coroners and bereaved families access to information held by technology companies
  • making non-fatal strangulation and threats to release intimate images an offence.

Further information

Lords Enquiry Service and FAQs

House of Lords FAQs

The Lords Enquiry Service provides information on the role, work and membership of the House of Lords.

  • Telephone: 0800 223 0855 (Freephone) or 020 7219 3107
  • Email: hlinfo@parliament.uk
  • Text Relay: 18001 7219 3107

The telephone enquiry service is open from 10am - 5pm Monday to Thursday, and 10am - 4pm on Fridays. During recess, the hours are 10am - 1pm and 2pm - 4pm Monday to Friday.

Please note that the Enquiry Service is unable to forward emails to members of the Lords on your behalf. You can find a member's contact details on their webpage, or use contactholmember@parliament.uk.