Rafe Heydel-Mankoo

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Historian, Author and Broadcaster specialising in British & Canadian identity & culture, national symbols and institutions of sovereignty, the Crown and the constitution, the Commonwealth Realms. and the wider Anglosphere, London and Sir Winston Churchill. (AKA: Rafal Mankoo)

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Books by Rafe Heydel-Mankoo

LORDS REFORM - Bicameralism & Representative Democracy: An International Perspective

OUR HOUSE: REFLECTIONS ON REPRESENTATION & REFORM IN THE HOUSE OF LORDS - by ResPublica (think tank). Co-Authors: Prof. Sir Roger Scruton FRSL, Frank Field MP, Jon Longworth MEP, Bishop Tim Stevens CBE, Rafe Heydel-Mankoo FRCGS, Lord Wei, Philip Blond, Sir Stephn Bubb etc., 2012

"Our House" is a keynote publication from British think tank ResPublica, which explores methods o... more "Our House" is a keynote publication from British think tank ResPublica, which explores methods of reforming the House of Lords to enable it to improve the quality of legislation and national life by upholding and communicating the views and values of British civil society.

"Our House" comprises a collection of expert essays written by an impressive collection of nationally respected civic and institutional leaders, authorities and commentators. These include:

Prof. Sir Roger Scruton FRSL, political philosopher;
John Longworth MEP, former Dir. Gen. of the British Chambers of Commerce;
The Rt. Rev'd Bishop Tim Stevens CBE, Convenor of The Lords Spiritual;
The Rt. Hon. Frank Field MP;
Philip Blond, Respublica Director
Rafe Heydel-Mankoo FRCGS, Historian and Respublica Fellow
The Rt. Hon. The Lord Adebowale, Chief Executive of social enterprise Turning Point;
The Rt. Hon. Lord Wei, former Government Adviser on the ‘Big Society’; and
Sir Stephen Bubb, Chief Exec. of The Assoc. of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations.

The much discussed publication was initiated by Philip Blond (ResPublica Director) and Rafal (Rafe) Heydel-Mankoo (ResPublica Fellow & British Civic Life workstream) and was formally launched in the House of Lords in 2012, with a panel including:

The Rt Hon Frank Field MP, The Rt Hon The Lord Low of Dalston and, most significantly, the Government's Minister for Political and Constitutional Reform: Mark Harper MP.

Indeed, the publication opens with an official statement from the Government specially written by Mark Harper in his capacity as Minister for Constitiutional and Political Reform.

In their concluding chapter, Phillip Blond and Rafe Heydel-Mankoo together lay out a series of powerful arguments against the Coalition Government's planned reforms and set out a radical reform alternative --- a ‘hybrid house’ that is:

1/3 elected by the public;
1/3 nominated by political parties, and
1/3 appointed by civil society.

Agreeing that the upper house must include an elected element, Blond & Heydel-Mankoo argue that such an election should foster plurality and strengthen our mixed constitution, rather than extend the writ of a form of democracy that will diminish the plurality of the Upper House. A wholly elected upper house would destroy the complementary nature of our bicameral parliament, where the upper house cannot thwart the elected lower house but merely try to urge "sober second thought". An elected upper house would conceivably lead to deadlock as each claimed a rival mandate.

Far from being undemocratic, Heydel-Mankoo stresses that in common with many upper houses, the House of Lords "performs a role as democratically vital as the lower house, through its championing of the constitution and human rights, its legislative review and executive scrutiny, and its defence of political minorities and opposition.

Rafal Heydel-Mankoo's solo essay on bicameralism examines the key roles upper houses play around the world, from strengthening national unity to substantially improving the quality of legislation.

Noting that the current House of Lords is already more diverse than the House of Commons, Heydel-Mankoo argues that it has the potential to be more representative of British society than the lower house and therefore better able to serve the wider public interest.

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Papers by Rafe Heydel-Mankoo

EXPERT OPINION on UK House of Lords' EQUALITY (TITLES) BILL [HL] 2013-2014: A Bill to Establish Gender-Neutral Succession to Hereditary Titles & to Extend Courtesy Titles to the Husbands & Same-sex Partners of Titled Persons.

Opinion by Rafe Heydel-Mankoo -- Privately Commissioned by The Standing Council of The Baronetage, 2013

Sponsored by the elected hereditary peer Lord Lucas (12th Baron Lucas and 8th Lord Dingwall) The ... more Sponsored by the elected hereditary peer Lord Lucas (12th Baron Lucas and 8th Lord Dingwall) The Equality (Titles) Bill was a private member’s bill to: “make provision for the succession of female heirs to hereditary titles; for husbands and civil partners of those receiving honours to be allowed to use equivalent honorary titles to those available to wives; and for connected purposes”.

The Bill was introduced into the House of Lords on 14 May 2013 and passed Second Reading on 25 October 2013.

As an interested party, The Standing Council of the Baronetage, the official body representing baronets (hereditary "Sirs"), commissioned a formal Opinion from Rafe Heydel-Mankoo.

The Opinion was issued as the Bill entered the Committee stage.

In summary, the Bill dealt with two issues:

1. Female succession to hereditary peerages and baronetcies
2. The conferral of titles on the husbands and same-sex married partners of titled persons.

For many interested parties, the first issue can be subdivided into two similar but separate issues:
1 (a): Female succession to hereditary peerages and baronetcies to prevent sex discrimination.
1 (b): Female succession to hereditary peerages and baronetcies to prevent the extinction of peerages and baronetcies due to lack of male heirs.

Rafal Heydel-Mankoo acknowledged that The Equality (Titles) Bill was well-intentioned, and its proponents, undoubtedly inspired by the Succession to the Crown Act 2013 (an Act to change the
law of succession to the British throne from male-preference primogeniture to gender-neutral absolute primogeniture), were clearly motivated by laudable principles of fairness and equality.

However his conclusion was that an admirable motivation did nothing to alter the fact that The Equality (Titles) Bill was fundamentally unsound and suffered from poor drafting and a failure to comprehend the complexity of the baronetage, the peerage and peerage law.

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