Commentary on provisions of the Act Section 1: Amendment of Lords Spiritual (Women) Act 2015
Section 1 amends section 1 of the Lords Spiritual (Women) Act 2015 Act so that its provisions are extended and continue to have effect for all vacancies arising before 18 May 2030, rather than ceasing to have effect on 17 May 2025. This means that a vacancy within the 21 Lords Spiritual who do not hold an ex officio see will be filled by the most senior eligible female diocesan bishop in England, who is not already entitled to sit in the House of Lords, for a further five years, if one is available. The vacancy will be filled by the issue of a writ of summons to that bishop. She will be entitled to a writ in subsequent Parliaments until she ceases to be a diocesan bishop or is appointed to one of the five ex officio sees. The most senior eligible bishop will be the person whose election as a bishop of a diocese was confirmed first (this reflects the arrangements under the Bishoprics Act 1878 for determining seniority of precedence). If there is no eligible female bishop, the most senior male bishop will become a member of the House of Lords, as per the 1878 Act. A summary of how these arrangements operate can be found at Annex A.