Peter Hain warns Lords not to oppose chamber reform
The House of Lords should not stand in the way of political reform, says former Welsh secretary Peter Hain.
The Neath MP spoke out as Labour leader Ed Miliband said the party will create an elected senate if it wins next May's general election.
The House of Lords would be replaced with senators elected from Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the English regions instead of constituencies.
The party says it would give Wales a "stronger voice in Westminster".
Mr Hain said the current system is "failing the country".
"People will expect change of this kind and, whatever the detail is, the House of Lords should not stand in the way of that," he said.
"Whether it's in the upsurge of support for the United Kingdom Independence Party or the greens, the old political system is failing the country."
Mr Miliband told a conference in Blackpool on Saturday that the current system "fails to represent large parts of the UK".