Lord Skelmersdale

Conservative - Excepted Hereditary

Became Member: 8th July 1974

Left House: 31st October 2018 (Death)


Lord Skelmersdale is not a member of any APPGs
3 Former APPG memberships
Bridge, Energy Studies, Zambia and Malawi
Deputy Speaker (Lords)
29th Nov 2010 - 31st Oct 2018
Deputy Chairman of Committees (Lords)
13th Oct 2010 - 31st Oct 2018
Procedure and Privileges Committee
12th Jun 2014 - 27th Apr 2017
Refreshment Committee (Lords)
8th Jun 2015 - 31st Aug 2016
Communications and Digital Committee
22nd Jun 2010 - 14th May 2014
Leader's Group on Working Practices
27th Jul 2010 - 26th Apr 2011
Statutory Instruments (Joint Committee)
20th May 1992 - 18th Nov 2004
Procedure and Privileges Committee
9th Jun 1997 - 30th Nov 2000
Procedure and Privileges Committee
19th Nov 1981 - 15th Nov 1988


Division Voting information

Lord Skelmersdale has voted in 732 divisions, and 8 times against the majority of their Party.

9 Dec 2016 - House of Lords Act 1999 (Amendment) Bill [HL] - View Vote Context
Lord Skelmersdale voted No - against a party majority and in line with the House
One of 5 Conservative No votes vs 7 Conservative Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 12 Noes - 105
9 Dec 2016 - House of Lords Act 1999 (Amendment) Bill [HL] - View Vote Context
Lord Skelmersdale voted No - against a party majority and in line with the House
One of 4 Conservative No votes vs 22 Conservative Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 26 Noes - 95
4 Jul 2016 - Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016 - View Vote Context
Lord Skelmersdale voted Aye - against a party majority and against the House
One of 9 Conservative Aye votes vs 81 Conservative No votes
Tally: Ayes - 57 Noes - 91
24 Feb 2015 - Human Fertilisation and Embryology (Mitochondrial Donation) Regulations 2015 - View Vote Context
Lord Skelmersdale voted Aye - against a party majority and against the House
One of 16 Conservative Aye votes vs 73 Conservative No votes
Tally: Ayes - 48 Noes - 280
4 Jun 2013 - Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill - View Vote Context
Lord Skelmersdale voted Aye - against a party majority and against the House
One of 65 Conservative Aye votes vs 79 Conservative No votes
Tally: Ayes - 148 Noes - 390
25 Jan 2012 - Welfare Reform Bill - View Vote Context
Lord Skelmersdale voted Aye - against a party majority and against the House
One of 2 Conservative Aye votes vs 151 Conservative No votes
Tally: Ayes - 216 Noes - 256
12 Dec 2011 - Welfare Reform Bill - View Vote Context
Lord Skelmersdale voted Aye - against a party majority and against the House
One of 2 Conservative Aye votes vs 126 Conservative No votes
Tally: Ayes - 152 Noes - 182
8 Nov 2011 - Procedure of the House (Proposal 9) - View Vote Context
Lord Skelmersdale voted Aye - against a party majority and against the House
One of 2 Conservative Aye votes vs 113 Conservative No votes
Tally: Ayes - 173 Noes - 173
View All Lord Skelmersdale Division Votes

All Debates

Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.

Sparring Partners
Lord Freud (Conservative)
(20 debate interactions)
Lord De Mauley (Conservative)
(13 debate interactions)
Earl Howe (Conservative)
Deputy Leader of the House of Lords
(10 debate interactions)
View All Sparring Partners
Department Debates
Department for Work and Pensions
(50 debate contributions)
Cabinet Office
(16 debate contributions)
Home Office
(15 debate contributions)
View All Department Debates
Legislation Debates
European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018
(116 words contributed)
Smart Meters Act 2018
(63 words contributed)
Nuclear Safeguards Act 2018
(41 words contributed)
View All Legislation Debates
View all Lord Skelmersdale's debates

Lords initiatives

These initiatives were driven by Lord Skelmersdale, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.


Lord Skelmersdale has not introduced any legislation before Parliament

Lord Skelmersdale has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting


Latest 6 Written Questions

(View all written questions)
Written Questions can be tabled by MPs and Lords to request specific information information on the work, policy and activities of a Government Department
14th Sep 2016
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they began to draft legislation to combine the activities of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman with those of the Local Government Ombudsman, whether this work is continuing, and when they expect to introduce such a bill into Parliament.

In December 2015 the Government confirmed its intention to bring forward draft legislation to create a Public Service Ombudsman, encompassing the existing jurisdictions of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman and the Local Government Ombudsman. The intention remains to publish a draft Bill in this parliamentary session.

20th Nov 2014
To ask Her Majesty’s Government which are the oldest three Acts on the statute book; and what is the reason for their retention in each case.

Legislation.gov.uk lists all of the known Acts of the United Kingdom Parliament and its predecessors.

The three oldest enactments are contained in the 1267 Statute of Marlborough which contains four chapters from that session. The age of an Act does not always indicate its utility; legislation is only repealed where a clear case has been made to do so. The Law Commissions regularly produce reports identifying obsolete and unnecessary legislation.

The Law Commission for England and Wales have recently published a consultation paper proposing the repeal of chapters 4 and 15 of the Statute of Marlborough. The consultation can be found at the following web address:

http://lawcommission.justice.gov.uk/consultations/general-slr-repeal-proposals.htm

Lord Wallace of Saltaire
Liberal Democrat Lords Spokesperson (Cabinet Office)
6th Sep 2016
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they expect to publish an affirmative order to amend the law on public footpaths.

I am unable to confirm a precise date at present. The Government expects to publish an affirmative order later in the session. I would be happy to meet my Noble Friend and other interested peers to discuss progress with the whole package of reform.

25th Mar 2015
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, under the provisions of the Deregulation Bill, rights of way officers have a duty to persuade objectors to a footpath deregulation order agreed by a county council to correct an error in the definitive footpath map in order to prevent an appeal to the Secretary of State.

It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member

10th Mar 2017
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to replace or extend their stroke strategy.

The National Health Service in England will continue to build on the successes of the current stroke strategy. There has been significant, sustained improvement in the quality of stroke care over the last decade and we will continue to deliver our ambition for truly world leading care. That is why the NHS rigorously audits the quality of stroke care across the country each year. It means that we now have some of the fastest improvements in hospital recovery rates for stroke and heart attacks in Europe.

Decisions on whether the stroke strategy should be renewed are a matter for NHS England. As NHS England has moved away from disease specific strategies towards guidance that is more cross cutting, and because the stroke strategy remains valid and implementation of it continues, NHS England has no current plans to renew it.

23rd Oct 2017
To ask Her Majesty's Government when they intend to decide on the merger of Taunton Deane and West Somerset District Councils.

The Government is currently considering the merger proposal submitted by West Somerset District Council and Taunton Deane Borough Council together with all the representations it has received to date on this matter, and intends as soon as practicable to announce how it is minded to proceed. There will then be a reasonable period for those interested to make further representations before my Right Honourable Friend, the Secretary of State, makes his final decision on whether, subject to Parliamentary approval, to implement the proposal.