Sadiq Khan has been granted a position in the House of Lords by Keir Starmer in a recent announcement of political peerages before Parliament’s summer recess. The Labour London Mayor will join the ranks of the red benches alongside former cabinet secretary Sir Chris Wormald and Sir Brian Leveson, a retired senior judge without party affiliation.
Former cabinet secretary Sir Chris Wormald, who left his post following a No10 reshuffle in the aftermath of the Peter Mandelson scandal in February, was also included in the list. The Prime Minister appointed 16 new Labour members to the Lords, including Christina McAnea, former chief of major union Unison, and Alison Garnham, chief executive of the Child Poverty Action Group.
Sir Ed Davey of the Liberal Democrats nominated five members, while Tory leader Kemi Badenoch put forward three. The lineup was reportedly in the works prior to the Prime Minister’s resignation announcement, with a separate resignation honours list potentially in the pipeline.
Keir Starmer hinted at the possibility of issuing resignation honours despite his earlier pledge not to. Labour had criticized the Conservatives for stacking the red benches during their time in power. Sadiq Khan’s peerage opens the door for him to potentially become a minister, although his spokesperson clarified that he has no intention of taking on a ministerial role, emphasizing his commitment to serving as Mayor.
The House of Lords recently witnessed changes with the House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Act 2026, which ended seats for hereditary peers. Concerns persist regarding the size of the House, currently at 774 members, compared to the capped 650 MPs. The Conservative party maintains the largest representation in the Lords with 246 peers, followed by Labour with 216, and 156 crossbench peers along with 74 Liberal Democrats.