The controversy raised by the Government’s move to curtail the powers of the Lords shows that the issues involved are in danger of not being clearly realised. The Government would like people to think that Conservatives want to maintain the Upper House as a bulwark of reactionary privilege, while Labour wants to reform it. This would be a quite false reading... there is, certainly, something reactionary and out of date about the House of Lords – its constitution and membership.

There is a widespread conviction in the [Conservative] party that changes are overdue. The Government, however, is not proposing to alter the constitution of the Upper House; the plan is merely to restrict its powers. And its powers are not in essence reactionary; they are an essential safeguard of democratic rules and rights. Virtually all countries where democracy is practised have a Second Chamber. Its broad purpose is always to act as a check on the Government... it stands for a recognition that the right of judgment exercised by the people at a General Election is not enough to prevent a Government from acting recklessly, or from abusing its powers. The community needs a watchdog to maintain continuous vigilance – now more than ever before.

Key quote

“It is impossible for the Government of India to tolerate this state of affairs any longer.”

Indian prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru warns his Pakistan counterpart following a fresh territorial dispute

Talking point

Many places in Britain are now faced with a serious shortage of water. Unless rain comes soon, water rationing will be inevitable. According to the British Waterworks Association some towns only have a few days’ reserve water left.

Water rationing if rain fails