Nigel Farage has demanded the right to nominate Reform UK peers to the House of Lords for the first time, accusing Sir Keir Starmer of overseeing a “democratic disparity” in Parliament’s upper chamber.
In a letter to the Prime Minister seen by The Times, the Reform leader highlighted how his party has no representation in the Lords despite winning more than 4.1 million votes at last year’s general election, having four MPs and controlling ten councils across England.
The demand prompted a brutal dismissal from Defence Secretary John Healey, who told Times Radio: “This is the same Nigel Farage that called for the abolition of the House of Lords and now wants to fill it with his cronies.”
I’m not sure that Parliament is going to be benefiting from more Putin apologists like Nigel Farage, to be honest,” the Cabinet minister added in comments on LBC.
Mr Farage’s letter pointed out the disparity between Reform’s electoral performance and its lack of Lords representation compared to smaller parties. The Greens, DUP, Plaid Cymru and UUP have 13 peers between them, but Reform UK has none,” he wrote.
He noted that the Green Party, which has the same number of MPs as Reform, has two peers, whilst the Democratic Unionist Party has six peers despite having five MPs. The Ulster Unionist Party has three peers with just one MP.
The Reform leader also highlighted that the Liberal Democrats have 76 peers despite receiving 600,000 fewer votes than Reform UK at the July 2024 general election.
The time has come to address the democratic disparity that exists in the upper house,” Mr Farage wrote, adding: “None of this holds water any longer given the seismic shifts that have taken place in British politics.
Potential Reform nominees for the Lords could include Ann Widdecombe, the former Conservative MP who serves as the party’s immigration and justice spokeswoman, billionaire donor and treasurer Nick Candy, and Zia Yusuf, Reform’s former chairman who now heads the party’s “DOGE” efficiency unit.
Constitutional expert Lord Norton of Louth told The Times there was a “case for minor parties like Reform to have representation in the Lords” but stressed this decision rested entirely with the Prime Minister.
“The PM is the only person who writes the rules on this as it stands,” he said. “Historically appointments to the House of Lords were in the gift of the Crown but that function has been passed to the prime minister. So any decision on whether to create Reform peers would rest with him alone.”
Mr Healey’s stinging response included criticism of Reform’s stance on Ukraine, telling LBC: “Look at what he’s said about Russia, look at what he’s said about Putin in the past.
Asked whether calling Mr Farage a “Putin apologist” was “a bit strong”, the Defence Secretary doubled down: “At this point, when maximum pressure needs to be put on Putin to support Ukraine in negotiations, when the maximum condemnation of Putin is required from someone who is sitting down with Trump in Alaska but turning up the attacks on Ukraine, it needs all voices.
And I have to say, the voice of Reform is conspicuously absent in any of our discussions and any of our defence debates about Ukraine and about Russia,” he added.
Lord O’Donnell, the former cabinet secretary, said the system needed reform: “It is a feature of our system that the PM can appoint whoever they like to the House of Lords. It is an area where I think we need greater checks and balances.”
However, Conservative peer Lord Hayward argued Sir Keir should wait before making any decision. “Just because Reform has a few MPs and is doing well in the opinion polls that does not mean that they are an established credible party that should be represented in the House of Lords,” he said.
“I think Starmer is entirely within his rights to wait and see how Reform actually does over the next few years before making a decision.”
The controversy comes after Sir Keir appointed 30 new Labour peers in December, including his sacked chief of staff Sue Gray, whilst allowing the Conservatives to nominate six new peers and the Liberal Democrats two.
Mr Farage criticised those appointments at the time, saying Labour’s “lofty ambition” to abolish the Lords had “fallen by the wayside.”
Reform has been leading in national opinion polls for several months and won the only parliamentary by-election held since the general election, taking Runcorn and Helsby by just six votes in May.
The party also made sweeping gains in May’s local elections, taking control of councils including Durham, Kent, Lancashire, Staffordshire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Doncaster, North Northamptonshire, West Northamptonshire and Lincolnshire.
Despite previously calling for Lords reform and a smaller chamber, Mr Farage insisted his request was “modest” and that Reform UK wished “to appoint life peers to the upper house at the earliest possible opportunity.”
A Downing Street spokesperson said: “The process for appointments to the House of Lords follows established conventions and is guided by advice from the House of Lords Appointments Commission and other relevant bodies. While political parties may make representations regarding peerage nominations, decisions are made in line with long-standing procedures.”
The Prime Minister faces no constitutional obligation to elevate opposition figures to the Lords, though convention dictates that opposition leaders are sometimes asked to nominate individuals for peerages.
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