Politics
House of Lords sold £90,000 worth of Champagne in 2023
Almost £90,000 worth of champagne was bought for events and at the gift shop in the House of Lords last year.
A total of 1,589 bottles were bought over the course of 2023, at a cost of £88,987.90, according to new data from a Scottish National Party (SNP) Freedom of Information (FOI) request.
It’s a slight rise from 2022, when 1,580 bottles were sold at a cost of £85,462.51.
Tommy Sheppard, the SNP MP for Edinburgh East, was scathing about the figures released by the party on Tuesday, saying “a parliament where unelected Lords glug fizz and collect £342 a day” is “not fit to properly represent the people”.
“The past year has been defined by Westminster’s cost of living crisis that has seen living standards plummet and countless more households pushed into poverty and deprivation – a reality alien to the Lords and their lavish lifestyles” he said.
It shows, Mr Sheppard added, that the house is “archaic and out of touch” and “should be abolished” and Scots be allowed “to pursue an alternative from Westminster”.
The SNP has no representatives in the House of Lords due to its opposition to the unelected second chamber.
In 2020, the year COVID-19 hit the UK, sales of champagne in the House of Lords amounted to just £8,982, with only 180 bottles sold over the course of the year – part of which was spent in lockdown.
The 2019 figure was 1,441 bottles purchased, at a cost of £69,988.80.
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But a House of Lords spokesperson said the majority of the champagne was sold in the gift shop or at events hosted by external organisations.
The spokesperson said: “All alcohol, including champagne, sold in the House of Lords is sold at a profit.
“Most of the champagne sold by the House of Lords is bought by visitors in the gift shop and consumed away from Parliament by members of the public, or sold at banqueting events to organisations or individuals hosting the event in the House of Lords.
“It is not paid for by the taxpayer.”