Ministers offer Tories more peers to end hereditary bill standoff

Ministers are offering to create more members of the House of Lords than usual later this year, in a compromise that could allow some hereditary peers to keep their seats. The Conservatives have been given the chance to create a higher number of life peerages than in the previous two years, as ministers seek to pass a law to abolish the remaining hereditary peers. Lords sources said talks had been held, with one suggesting the number of life peerages offered would depend on how many Tory members of the upper house agree to retire. The offer comes as ministers try to pass the bill before the end of the parliamentary session in the spring, after its passage was delayed amid opposition. Baroness Smith, the leader of the House of Lords, is expected to put forward the compromise when the bill returns to the Lords for further scrutiny on Tuesday next week, as first reported by the Telegraph. In December 2025, 34 new peers were announced, including 25 Labour, five Liberal Democrats, and three Conservative. The number of extra peerages that would be set aside for the Conservatives is not yet known. Any hereditary peers that lose their seats once the bill has passed would have to apply for