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House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Act 2026

Sections6Effects4

Statutes amended

4 affected Acts; 15 amendments in total. Each block shows the target Act's text with this Act's changes applied.

House of Lords Act 1999

3 amendments · open Act

  1. Section 21 deletion

    2 Exception from section 1

    1 Section 1 shall not apply in relation to anyone excepted from it by or in accordance with Standing Orders of the House.
    2 At any one time 90 people shall be excepted from section 1; but anyone excepted as holder of the office of Earl Marshal, or as performing the office of Lord Great Chamberlain, shall not count towards that limit.
    3 Once excepted from section 1, a person shall continue to be so throughout his life (until an Act of Parliament provides to the contrary).

    subsections (4) – (6) omitted in full

  2. Section 3(2)1 deletion

    3 Removal of disqualifications in relation to the House of Commons

    subsection (1) unchanged

    2 Subsection (1) shall not apply in relation to anyone excepted from section 1 by virtue of section 2.
  3. Schedule 1 ¶ 11 deletion

    Schedule 1 — Amendments

    italic heading: Peerage Act 1963 (c.48)

    1 In section 1(2) of the Peerage Act 1963 (disclaimer of certain hereditary peerages) for the words from “has” to the end there shall be substituted the words “is excepted from section 1 of the House of Lords Act 1999 by virtue of section 2 of that Act”.

    paragraphs 2 – 3 unchanged

House of Lords Reform Act 2014

5 amendments · open Act

  1. Section 11 insertion

    1 Resignation

    subsections (1) – (4) unchanged

    5 Where a notice under this section is given and signed by a person on behalf of a peer who lacks capacity to give or sign the notice, the notice must be given and signed in accordance with Standing Orders of the House.
  2. Section 4(3)1 change

    4 Effect of ceasing to be a member

    subsections (1) – (2) unchanged

    3 Accordingly, the person shall not be entitled to receive a writ to attend the House (whether under section 1 of the Life Peerages Act 1958, by virtue of the dignity conferred by virtue of appointment as a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary, by virtue of a hereditary peerage or as a Lord Spiritual) and may not attend the House in pursuance of a writ already received.

    subsections (4) – (8) unchanged

  3. Section 4(4)1 deletion

    4 Effect of ceasing to be a member

    subsections (1) – (3) unchanged

    4 If the person is a hereditary peer who is excepted from section 1 of the House of Lords Act 1999 by virtue of section 2 of that Act, the person ceases to be excepted from section 1 of that Act (and accordingly section 3 of that Act applies (removal of disqualification on voting in parliamentary elections or being an MP)).

    subsections (5) – (8) unchanged

  4. Section 4(5)1 change

    4 Effect of ceasing to be a member

    subsections (1) – (4) unchanged

    5 If the person is a peer other than a hereditary peer, the person is not, by virtue of that peerage, disqualified for—
    a voting at elections to the House of Commons, or
    b being, or being elected as, a member of that House.

    subsections (6) – (8) unchanged

  5. Section 4(7)1 deletion

    4 Effect of ceasing to be a member

    subsections (1) – (6) unchanged

    7 The Standing Orders of the House required by section 2(4) of the House of Lords Act 1999 (filling of vacancies) must make provision requiring the holding of a by-election to fill any vacancy which arises under this Act among the people excepted from section 1 of that Act in consequence of an election.

    subsection (8) unchanged

Peerage Act 1963

3 amendments · open Act

  1. Section 1(2)1 change

    1 Disclaimer of certain hereditary peerages

    subsection (1) unchanged

    2 Any instrument of disclaimer to be delivered under this section in respect of a peerage shall be delivered within the period of twelve months beginning with the day on which the person disclaiming succeeds to that peerage or, if he is under the age of twenty-one when he so succeeds, the period of twelve months beginning with the day on which he attains that age; and no such instrument shall be delivered in respect of a peerage by a person who is excepted from section 1 of the House of Lords Act 1999 by virtue of section 2 of that Act.

    subsections (3) – (5) unchanged

  2. Section 41 deletion

    4 Scottish peerages

    The holder of a peerage in the peerage of Scotland shall have the same right to receive writs of summons to attend the House of Lords, and to sit and vote in that House, as the holder of a peerage in the peerage of the United Kingdom; and the enactments relating to the election of Scottish representative peers shall cease to have effect.
  3. Section 61 deletion

    6 Peeresses in own right

    A woman who is the holder of a hereditary peerage in the peerage of England, Scotland, Great Britain or the United Kingdom shall (whatever the terms of the letters patent or other instrument, if any, creating that peerage) have the same right to receive writs of summons to attend the House of Lords, and to sit and vote in that House, and shall be subject to the same disqualifications in respect of membership of the House of Commons and elections to that House, as a man holding that peerage.

Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010

4 amendments · open Act

  1. Section 422 deletions

    42 Tax status of members of House of Lords: transitional provision

    subsections (1) – (2) unchanged

    3 If M is a person excepted from section 1 of the House of Lords Act 1999 by virtue of section 2 of that Act—
    a M shall no longer be excepted from section 1 of the 1999 Act, and
    b if M counted towards the limit under section 2(2) of the 1999 Act, that limit is reduced by one.
    4 But section 3(1)(b) of the 1999 Act does not apply in relation to M before the end of the period of three years beginning with the date on which the notice is given.

    subsections (5) – (10) unchanged

  2. Section 42(5)1 change

    42 Tax status of members of House of Lords: transitional provision

    subsections (1) – (4) unchanged

    5 If M is not such a person, M ceases to be disqualified by virtue of M's peerage (or dignity) for—
    a voting at elections to the House of Commons, or
    b being, or being elected as, a member of that House.

    subsections (6) – (10) unchanged

  3. Section 42(8)2 changes

    42 Tax status of members of House of Lords: transitional provision

    subsections (1) – (7) unchanged

    8 If, after the notice is given, a peerage is conferred on M or M succeeds to a peerage, subsection (2) above does not stop M being entitled to receive writs of summons to attend the House of Lords by virtue of that peerage. If subsection (3)(a) has applied to M, it does not stop M becoming excepted from section 1 of the House of Lords Act 1999 again by filling a vacancy under section 2 of that Act after the notice is given.

    subsections (9) – (10) unchanged

  4. Section 42(9)1 deletion

    42 Tax status of members of House of Lords: transitional provision

    subsections (1) – (8) unchanged

    9 If, after the notice is given, M becomes the person who is to hold the office of Earl Marshal or perform the office of Lord Great Chamberlain, subsection (2) above does not stop M being entitled to receive writs of summons to attend the House of Lords by virtue of the peerage that led to M becoming the person who is to hold or perform the office in question.

    subsection (10) unchanged