UK govt to drop curbs on House of Lords powers - BBC

The UK government has dropped plans to curb the power of the House of Lords, the BBC reported, citing unnamed sources.

The measures were drawn up under the administration of previous prime minister David Cameron after the second chamber inflicted an embarrassing defeat on the government over cuts to tax credits.

However, the BBC cited one source as saying it had now "been dumped", while another added: "The world has changed."

The ruling Conservative Party does not have a majority in the Lords.

Labour peer Baroness Smith said the plan to curb the Lords' powers was an "absurd overreaction".

The BBC said it had been told the change is part of Downing Street's attempts to distance itself from the previous administration, and part of its desire to pare back any legislation that might be controversial when the government is likely to face resistance in Parliament over its plans for leaving the EU.

Sources also suggested the government had been discussing ways of building a more constructive relationship with the Lords.

Lord Strathclyde, who had drawn up the plans under Cameron, told the BBC it would be sensible if the government could find a way of working more effectively with opposition parties in the Lords without having to change the law.

Downing Street did not deny or confirm the suggestion saying: "We will be publishing our response in due course."

Baroness Smith, Labour's leader in the Lords, said she welcomed the government's realisation that "the Strathclyde review was an absurd overreaction to a sensible and principled challenge on tax credits".