The leader of the Conservative peers gave warning last night that the Government had begun a process of unpicking Britain’s constitution after MPs backed a fully elected House of Lords by a large majority.

Lord Strathclyde, who supported an 80 per cent elected second chamber in the face of near-unanimous opposition from Tory peers, said that an all-elected Lords opened a host of questions, including the establishment of the Church of England, because 26 bishops have seats in the House.

He tried to pour cold water on the mood of celebration among reformers by pointing out that the votes rejected the preferred options of Jack Straw, the Leader of the Commons, of a half-appointed, half-elected chamber. “This is a repudiation of Jack Straw’s White Paper, which was an attempt to create a consensus, and the House of Commons seems to have voted for a very substantially or an all-elected House,” Lord Strathclyde said.

“Now the devil will be in the detail. There are major questions that need to be asked, particularly about the method of election.”

The Lords will vote on the Government’s proposals for reform next Tuesday and had been expected to reinforce their support for an all-appoint-ed chamber, although some peers will reflect on the implications of the Commons votes.

Such comments failed, however, to deflect the jubilant reaction from supporters of Lords reform as politicians and campaigners on both sides agreed that last night’s votes represented an historic moment.

Mr Straw, relieved that the Government had avoided the stalemate of four years ago, when MPs rejected all options for Lords reform, hailed the outcome as a breakthrough. “The House of Commons has broken the deadlock,” he said. “It is a dramatic result in the history of the British Parliament. I am delighted that MPs of all parties have come together to signal the way forward.”

Sir Menzies Campbell, the Liberal Democrat leader, whose party angered reformers by insisting on backing only an 80 or 100 per cent elected Lords and opposing a 60 per cent elected chamber, said: “After nearly a hundred years the House of Commons has at last taken the momentous step to reform the upper House and make it fit for a modern democracy,” he said. “This is a famous victory for progressive opinion both in Parliament and in the country.”

Theresa May, the Shadow Leader of the House, who led many Conservative MPs in backing an 80 per cent elected chamber, said that tactical voting by opponents of Lords reform had complicated the picture. “Tonight’s votes are a victory for democrats,” she said. “The House of Commons has clearly expressed a preference for a substantially or wholly elected House of Lords. But this is only a first step, and indeed it raises further questions. Given the tactical voting tonight we now need to establish what the House of Commons’ settled view is.”

During exchanges in the Commons after the votes, the Conservative backbencher Sir Patrick Cormack, who favours an appointed second chamber, called the reform proposals the most important constitutional changes in Britain since 1650. And the Labour MP David Clelland, a leading opponent of elections to the Lords, demanded a referendum before any reforms were implemented, saying that a fully elected Lords did not appear in the manifesto of any major political party.

The options

1. Keep a two-chamber Parliament Passed 416-163

2. Fully appointed second chamber Rejected 196-375

3. 20% elected, 80% appointed Rejected no vote

4. 40% elected, 60% appointed Rejected no vote

5. 50% elected, 50% appointed Rejected 155-418

6. 60% elected, 40% appointed Rejected 178-392

7. 80% elected, 20% appointed Passed 305-267

8. Fully elected chamber Passed 337-224

9. Hereditaries stay until election Rejected 241-329

10. End 92 remaining hereditary peers Passed 391-111

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