Cook spells out reform of the Lords

The Government is to press ahead with the early reform of the "medieval" House of Lords, the TUC congress heard yesterday.

In a pointedly "fraternal" address which contrasted with the Prime Minister's stern strictures of Tuesday, Foreign Secretary Robin Cook gave the clearest indication yet that the policy would be set out in the New Year's Queen's Speech.

Mr Cook compared the Upper House with the cast of a Gilbert and Sullivan opera and promised that hereditary peers would lose their vote.

To warm applause he said: "By the time we meet again next year, we will be on the verge of putting into practice our commitment to clear that medieval lumbar of Parliament and to make it absolutely established in both Houses of Parliament that the people who take part in passing the laws of our country should earn their seat by the process of democracy, not by the right of birth."

While the pledge to reform the Lords appeared in Labour's election manifesto, there was no indication of how quickly the legislation would be introduced.

Mr Cook's well received address compared with the less rapturous reception afforded to Tony Blair's sermonising on Tuesday and lecture on industrial policy delivered by Adair Turner, director general of the Confederation of British Industry, earlier yesterday.

The Foreign Secretary told delegates at the conference in Brighton that the relationship between unions and the Labour Party was not a "tactical alliance", it was a "strategic bond" which would endure.

He sought to enlist the help of trade unionists to communicate Labour Party policies to working people, a plea unlikely to pass the lips of the Prime Minister.

Mr Turner, only the second director general to address the TUC, made it clear that the CBI was opposed to the government's plan to introduce laws on union recognition.

He argued that it could lead to disputes and might sour industrial relations.

However, he said the CBI would continue in talks with the TUC in an attempt to minimise the danger of conflict and create a "workable" set of rules.

In his speech the Foreign Secretary said he understood Mr Turner's assertion that legislation could lead to tensions.

But he called on the CBI director general to accept that conflict could arise where a workforce felt their legitimate aspirations were being ignored.

In an attempt to find common ground Mr Turner welcomed the TUC's "Partners for Progress" theme this year and believed that there was considerable common ground.

The CBI leader indicated his disagreement with both Thatcherism and old- fashioned trade unionism. There seemed to be a "welcome escape" from the ideological struggles which characterised British politics ten or 20 years ago he said.

Echoing a theme of the Prime Minister, Mr Turner emphasised the need for flexibility among employees although conceding, like Mr Blair, that there was an equal need to ensure the "employability" of workers who could no longer look forward to a job for life.

The assertions of the Prime Minister and the industry leader contrasted with the findings of a report by the National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux which said that Labour flexibility was bringing "intolerable insecurity" to thousands.

Flexibility should give workers the opportunity to balance employment with other commitments as well as enabling businesses to adapt to change more easily.

The report "Flexibility Abused" found that workers were often presented with a one-sided bargain. They were expected to be at the beck and call of management, but employers made few attempts to accommodate the needs of their staff.

Increasing numbers of businesses wanted to minimise their legal obligations to their workforce. Some contracts gave employees no guarantee of any work or pay each week - the notorious "zero hours" contract.