The Lords Spiritual (Women) Act 2015 is an

Act of Parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation Primary legislation and secondary legislation (the latter also called delegated legislation or subordinate legislation) are two forms of law, created respectively by the legislat ...

of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. It stipulates that whenever a vacancy arises among the

Lords Spiritual The Lords Spiritual are the bishops of the Church of England who serve in the House of Lords of the United Kingdom. 26 out of the 42 diocesan bishops and archbishops of the Church of England serve as Lords Spiritual (not counting retired archbi ...

during the next ten years after the Act comes into force, the position has to be filled by a woman, if there is one who is eligible. In this case, the Act supersedes section 5 of the Bishoprics Act 1878, which would otherwise require "the issue of a writ of summons to that bishop of a see in England who having been longest bishop of a see in England has not previously become entitled to such writ". It does not apply to the five sees of

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...

York York is a cathedral city with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many hist ...

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, Durham or Winchester, which are always represented in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster ...

. The Act was passed half a year after the Bishops and Priests (Consecration and Ordination of Women) Measure 2014 authorised the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

to appoint women as bishops.

The Act in practice

The first female diocesan bishop, and thus the first female Lord Spiritual due to this Act, was Rachel Treweek in 2015. Consecrated

Bishop of Gloucester The Bishop of Gloucester is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Gloucester in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers the County of Gloucestershire and part of the County of Worcestershire. The see's centre of governan ...

on 22 July 2015 and enthroned on 19 September 2015, she joined the Lords on 7 September 2015 with the full title ''The Rt Rev. the Lord Bishop of Gloucester'', and was introduced to the House by the Archbishop of Canterbury and the

Bishop of London A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or offic ...

on 26 October 2015. She made her maiden speech on 7 March 2016. Since then, Christine Hardman (2016), Viv Faull (2018),

Libby Lane Elizabeth Jane Holden Lane (born 8 December 1966) is a British Anglican bishop and Lord Spiritual. Since February 2019, she has served as Bishop of Derby in the Church of England, the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Derby. From January 2015 t ...

(2019) and

Guli Francis-Dehqani Gulnar Eleanor "Guli" Francis-Dehqani (born 18 June 1966) is an Iranian-born British Anglican bishop who has been Bishop of Chelmsford since 2021. She previously served as the first Bishop of Loughborough, the sole suffragan bishop in the Diocese ...

(2021) have also entered the Lords due to this Act shortly after becoming diocesan bishops. Therefore 5 out of 14 vacant Lords positions occurring in the first 7 years of the Act (as of July 2022) have been filled by women. Without the Act, Treweek and Hardman would only have become Lords Spiritual in late 2021. In addition (and independently of the Act),

Sarah Mullally Dame Sarah Elisabeth Mullally, (''née'' Bowser; born 26 March 1962) is a British Anglican bishop, Lord Spiritual and former nurse. She has been Bishop of London since 8 March 2018.

entered the Lords ''ex officio'' when appointed

in 2018.

References

2015 in Christianity United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 2015 Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom concerning the House of Lords Reform in the United Kingdom Women bishops Women's rights in the United Kingdom 2015 in women's history {{UK-gov-stub

The Act in practice

See also

References