The House of Lords, a major tenant of British democracy as the second chamber of the UK Parliament, has sent out an “Inclusive Language Guide” to its members on what words they can use and ones they should avoid.
The House plays a crucial role, in questioning government action and investigating public policy with the power to delay or amend bills.
According to a Freedom Of Information request
obtained by The Mail on Sunday, the guidance on how to become an inclusive workplace says that “manpower” ought to be replaced with gender-neutral “workforce” and “staffing.” “Synthetic” and “artificial” must also replace the term “man-made.”
The guide, which is available for all
771 members of the House of Lords and their staff, also asked them to replace the term “ladies and gentlemen” with “one and all,” “colleagues,” and “folks.”
The news angered some including the historian Andrew Roberts who told The Telegraph that he
believed the guidance was “sad and somewhat pathetic,” adding that the House of Lords, an establishment which was founded in 1801, “ought to have remained above such ludicrous faddism.”
The ‘Inclusive Language Guide” stated that “the language you use impacts others around you, if the words and phrases you use are offensive this may exclude certain groups of people based on assumptions; cause distress or embarrassment; reinforce derogatory labels or stereotypes and belittle certain groups of people.”
A House of Lords spokesperson told the Mail On Sunday that “Parliament strives to be an inclusive workplace where people are valued for the skills and experience they bring. Part of this is providing guidance and information to staff and line managers on inclusivity on an advisory basis.”
Appointed by the Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister, the Lords, who are often life peers, come from a range of backgrounds such as politics, medicine, law, business, science, sports, education, the armed forces, diplomacy, and public service.
The House of Lords is keen to be recognised as “a positive, inclusive working environment” as part of its 2019–2022
Diversity and Inclusion Strategy, and the strategic aim of the House of Commons to “support a thriving parliamentary democracy.”
However in 2021, when a draft of the Ministerial and Other Maternity Allowances Bill
referred to “pregnant people” rather than mothers or women, current member of the House of Lords Lucas said that “almost everybody who spoke from all around the House was clear that the use of the phrase “pregnant person” in the Bill was unacceptable.” Consequently, the government was forced to
do a U-turn on the language.
