House of Lords written question – answered at on 11 November 2014.
Lord Alton of Liverpool
Crossbench
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the status of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Advisory Group on freedom of religion or belief; and when the group is expected to next meet.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
Minister of State
The Advisory Group on Freedom of Religion or Belief, comprised of civil society experts on this topic, is a Sub-Group of my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary’s Advisory Group on Human Rights. It operates under my
Chairmanship and directly informs Foreign and Commonwealth Office policy and activities in this area; and reports to the main Advisory Group. The Sub-Group has met twice so far, on
Yes1 person thinks so
No1 person thinks not
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The house of Lords is the upper chamber of the Houses of Parliament. It is filled with Lords (I.E. Lords, Dukes, Baron/esses, Earls, Marquis/esses, Viscounts, Count/esses, etc.) The Lords consider proposals from the EU or from the commons. They can then reject a bill, accept it, or make amendments. If a bill is rejected, the commons can send it back to the lords for re-discussion. The Lords cannot stop a bill for longer than one parliamentary session. If a bill is accepted, it is forwarded to the Queen, who will then sign it and make it law. If a bill is amended, the amended bill is sent back to the House of Commons for discussion.
The Lords are not elected; they are appointed. Lords can take a "whip", that is to say, they can choose a party to represent. Currently, most Peers are Conservative.
