WHAT a shame that some in the House of Lords appear hell-bent on thwarting the will of the people.

One of those is Lord Heseltine who, this week, declared his intention to block Brexit, no matter what it takes.

Supported by other, equally unelected and unaccountable peers, he will seek amendments to snarl up the smooth passage of the Bill to invoke Article 50.

The irony of this is not lost on me.

For it’s this type of arrogance that played such a significant part in the outcome of the EU referendum.

The British people were fed up with being told they didn’t know what they were doing.

They did, and their Lordships must fall into line.

If they don’t, they do themselves a disservice, which is a pity because the idea of an upper house full of those with wise heads and life experience is a good one.

However, something has gone awry.

The Lords no longer reflects the make-up of the Commons, with successive governments using their powers of patronage to fill the benches with placemen, usually former MPs.

This has thrown up some anomalies.

The Lib Dems, for example, have only seven elected MPs, yet the Party now fields 109 Peers.

Inevitably this skews decision-making in the Upper House.

I think it only pertinent at this stage to point out that many Peers benefit from generous EU pensions, which supplement their £300-a-day attendance allowance.

Now the Lords are under further scrutiny in this week’s documentary on BBC 2, with many saying that it was unwise to let the cameras in.

Lord Tyler hasn’t exactly helped the cause, calling the Lords the “best day care centre for the elderly in London”.

I support a second chamber, but a rethink is needed.