The ermines have been mothballed; the coronets stowed away. The United Kingdom has, at last, thrown out the hereditary peers from Parliament. This levelling process, begun by Tony (not yet Lord) Blair, and stymied for decades, has come to an end. It’s as if the lion and the unicorn had been torn from the royal coat of arms, and ordered to find other work.

Trump’s quest for a ‘Greater North America’ is in full swing

Good riddance Rene Redzepi

What Britain can learn from Israel’s female fighters

No longer will we gawp at the peers processing at the opening of Parliament, arrayed alongside their glittering spouses, their titles and names a reminder of centuries of history. Our parliament – the most ancient in the world – has lost that lustre for ever, and will increasingly resemble the bland, managerial talking-shops of Europe. Farewell, then, to Asquith, Curzon, Astor; to the 9th Duke of Wellington, and the 14th Lord Fairfax, whose ancestor fought under Elizabeth I. Close the panelled doors quietly,........

© The Spectator