Mayor Brenda Dacres takes seat in House of Lords

LONDON:

Mayor of Lewisham, Brenda Dacres, OBE, has taken her seat in the House of Lords as part of the latest intake of Labour peers to the unelected chamber. She was among the 25 nominations of peerage announced by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer last month.

The new appointments came as Labour accused the Tories of having packed the upper chamber while in power, enabling the party to frustrate the government’s legislative plans in opposition.

Mayor Dacres, whose parents are Jamaican, was elected mayor in March 2024, the first directly elected black mayor in London. She was previously a councillor for 10 years, representing wards in New Cross and Deptford and later became deputy mayor and Cabinet member for housing development and lanning in 2021.

She is currently chair of the Transport and Environment Committee at London Councils, the vice chair of Central London Forward, and a member of the Local Government Association’s Public Sector Reform and Innovation Committee. She was awarded an OBE for political and public service in 2025.

Dacres has lived in Lewisham, south London for over 40 years. Her parents came to England from Jamaica in the 1960s as part of the Windrush generation, her dad working as a mechanic and black cab driver, and her mum as an NHS nurse.

She received a grant from Lewisham Council and became the first in her family to go to university at London South Bank. She completed a degree in physical sciences with computing before completing a law degree, and was called to the Bar in 2006 by Middle Temple.

Dressed in the scarlet robes, the Labour peer was supported by Lord Kennedy and Baroness Kennedy of Cradley as she swore the oath of allegiance to the Monarch on Wednesday, January 7.

Commenting on being made a peer, Mayor Dacres said, “It’s an incredible honour to be awarded a peerage by the prime minister. I must admit I was very shocked to receive the phone call.

“It’s a privilege to serve the people of Lewisham, as I have done for over a decade. Lewisham is a very special place; it is my home, and I am looking forward to being a voice for our borough nationally, while remaining committed to my role as mayor until the end of my term in May.”

According to parliamentary data, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has appointed a total of 65 peers since Labour entered government, including the latest batch in December. Figures show the Conservatives remain the largest bloc in the Lords, with 281 peers compared with Labour’s 211. There are 177 crossbench peers and 75 from the Liberal Democrats.

Meanwhile, plans are going through Parliament to abolish the 92 seats reserved in the Lords for hereditary peers. There are currently 85 bloodline members after the suspension of by-elections pending legislation, the majority of whom are Conservative.

Further reform of the Lords is proposed, with a select committee due to report by the end of July on the introduction of a participation requirement and a retirement age.

There have been long-standing concerns about the size of the House and calls to reduce its membership, which currently stands at 851, compared with MPs, who are capped at 650.