Purge the Privy Council - starting with the Rt. Hon. Christopher Pincher Monday, 4 July, 2022 The following letter was published in The Daily Telegraph on 2 July, as a particularly serious sex scandal rocked Boris Johnson’s Government. SIR - Surely Christopher Pincher, the disgraced deputy chief whip (report, July 1), should be removed from the Privy Council. He is lucky to be on it. Ministers outside the Cabinet, and ordinary backbenchers, have only been appointed to it in recent years... Articles
Independent schools and the Government 24th May 2022 The Schools Bill, one of the Government’s principal measures in the new Session of Parliament, had its Second Reading in the Lords on 23 May. Alistair Lexden... Recent NewsSpeeches
The first attempt to get elected Members into the Lords, a century ago 17th May 2022 Those calling for an elected second chamber may be surprised to learn that a century has passed since the first government proposals were mooted. Alistair... Articles
A Lord in No 10 again? Or the First Baroness? 10th May 2022 The following letter was published in The Daily Telegraph on 10 May. SIR - The last peer to be prime minister was the great Lord Salisbury, the fourth longest... Articles
Privy Counsellors' Ballot 10th May 2022 Last week, the press reported that members of the Privy Council—who are styled right honourable—will have to ballot for places at the ceremony, known as the... Recent News
Biographer of Gladstone and Conservative Party Historian 5th May 2022 Alistair Lexden looks back on the career of an outstanding scholar. His tribute was drawn on by The Times, which published a long and full obituary on May 4... Articles
Book review: The man who loathed Sir Robert Peel 21st April 2022 The man in querstion was the fourth Duke of Newcastle. He poured his venom into his diary, which has just been published. Alistair Lexden’s review is attached... Articles
A great asset to the Lords 20th April 2022 On 13 April, Lord (David) Wolfson of Tredegar QC, a highly regarded barrister, resigned as Justice Minister in Lords. In a letter to Boris Johnson, he said that... Articles
The duchess who cared more for wildlife than for jewels 19th April 2022 On 12 April, The Daily Telegraph reported the trial of a gang who stole jewellery that had once belonged to Winifred, Duchess of Portland. The prize item was a... Recent News
A very rotten apple 7th April 2022 On 7 March (see below), Alistair Lexden told the House of Lords that Mike Veale, the former Wiltshire police constable who tried to smear Ted Heath as a child... Speeches
