A WORKINGTON peer has voiced his support for new plans that would see significant changes to the House of Lords, after Labour announced dramatic new plans for the second chamber.

On Monday, December 5 leader Sir Keir Starmer unveiled plans to abolish the House of Lords if the party wins the next general election.

The plans, which have been devised as part of a major review led by former Labour prime minister, Gordon Brown, would replace the current system with a newly-elected chamber with a substantially reduced membership.

Keir Starmer said the changes would represent 'the biggest ever transfer of power from Westminster to the British people.'

The move has been broadly supported by those on the left, but the government has accused the opposition of playing politics during a time of crisis.

Former Workington MP and member of the House of Lords Dale Campbell-Savours has supported changes to the system for more than a decade.

The peer also said that he believes some of the changes should start as early as the next Parliament.

He said: "I have been saying the same thing for the last 15 years and I have never really changed my views on it.

"That is that the Lords is far too large, it should be cut from 800 to around 450, they should do that in the next Parliament, don't try and do too much in one go.

"Then in the Parliament after that, change the whole way that it is constituted, in other words move from appointments to what I call indirect elections.

"I also believe that the chamber should no longer be called the Lords, instead it should be named the Senate, with senators indirectly elected."

Mr Campbell Savours said that his idea for the indirectly elected chamber would be for a list system, similar to the one that is used in Scottish Parliamentary elections.

He said: "At the moment, people go into a ballot box and vote for a candidate, so in Workington we vote for the Workington MP.

"In indirect elections you have lists, so people would vote for a list in your region, and take people off the list, it is a completely different electoral system."

Mr Campbell savours added: "And at the age of 80 I will not be seeking election."

READ MORE: Local reaction after Labour back plans to abolish 'indefensible' House of Lords