Sadiq Khan among 26 new peers to enter the Lords

London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan is one of 26 new peers set to receive seats in the House of Lords, a move described as one of Sir Keir Starmer’s final acts as prime minister. Sir Sadiq has been nominated to become a Labour Lord alongside 15 others, including broadcaster June Sarpong and former national union leader Christina McAnea. The government also announced five additional Liberal Democrat peers, three Conservative peers and two cross‑bench appointments: former civil service head Sir Chris Wormald and Sir Brian Leveson, a retired senior judge. Downing Street published the list of nominations and said the King “has been graciously pleased to signify his volition of conferring peerages”. The nominations come as Sir Keir prepares to leave office on Monday, when Andy Burnham is due to become the next prime minister. The BBC was told the list was a cross‑party selection that had been under discussion before Sir Keir announced his resignation as Labour leader last month. It is characterised as a list of “political peerages” rather than the resignation honours that outgoing prime ministers usually award. The development follows Sir Keir’s earlier indication that he might grant resignation honours on his departure from Downing Street, despite stating in 2023 that he found such awards “very hard to justify”. Reform UK received no peerages in the list released on Thursday. Nigel Farage of Reform UK denounced the appointments as “the uniparty writ large”, adding, “Once again there is nothing for Reform and we get an even more unrepresentative upper house.” Sir Sadiq’s name stood out among the selections. The former Labour MP is midway through his third term as London mayor, having first been elected in 2016. The BBC understands Sir Sadiq is not seeking a ministerial role in Andy Burnham’s incoming administration and has not yet decided whether he will pursue a fourth term as an elected official in 2028. A government source praised Sir Sadiq as “a superb politician who has transformed London for the better” and said his peerage was “thoroughly deserved”. The source added, “He has cut violent crime to record lows, cleaned up the capital's air, delivered the Elizabeth Line, and got London building council homes again.” A spokesperson for the mayor said Sir Sadiq was “honoured to be given a peerage”. The spokesperson continued, “He is excited about what more can be delivered in the years up and he will give his time and energy to standing up for our city and building a fairer, safer and greener London for everyone.” Members of the House of Lords are generally appointed by the King on the advice of the prime minister. Once a nominee clears vetting, the King formalises the appointment to the Lords. In 2022 Labour said it planned to abolish the Lords and replace it with a “new, reformed upper chamber”. That proposal was later scaled back; Labour committed to examining plans for an alternative second chamber while immediately abolishing the 92 seats reserved for hereditary peers, a change enacted this year. Andy Burnham has called for a complete overhaul of the unelected House of Lords. He told *The House* magazine last month, “I don't think we can justify half of our national legislature being unelected”. Burnham added, “I think this is something that is, in many ways, rather scandalous.”