Layout of the Palace of Westminster

After coming through the public entrance - St Stephen's Entrance - the approach to the Central Lobby of the Palace is through St Stephen's Hall from St Stephen's Porch. Central Lobby, a large octagonal hall, is the centrepiece of the Palace. When waiting to see their MP, members of the public wait here. The Central Lobby is a great masterpiece of Victorian art.

From the Central Lobby, corridors lead northward to the House of Commons Lobby and Chamber and southward to the House of Lords. Beyond the House of Lords are the ceremonial rooms used at the State Opening of Parliament - the Queen's Robing Room and the Royal Gallery - reached by a separate entrance under the Victoria Tower. The Royal Gallery is 33 m long, 13 m high and 13 m wide (110 ft x 44 ft x 44 ft). The Queen processes through it on her way to the Chamber of the House of Lords on the occasion of the State Opening of Parliament. It is also often used when members of the two Houses meet together to hear addresses by visiting heads of State or Government.

To the north of the House of Commons are the residences of the Speaker and the Serjeant-at-Arms, and various offices for ministers and officials. Beyond them is one of the most famous features of the Palace - the huge bell Big Ben housed in the Clock Tower. Big Ben came into operation in 1859 and weighs 13.7 tonnes.

The House of Lords

The Lords Chamber, the masterpiece of the rebuilt Palace, was first occupied in 1847. It is 24 m long, 14 m wide and 14 m high (80 ft x 46 ft x 46 ft). At its southern end is the Throne, from which the Queen reads her speech at the opening of Parliament. In front of the Throne is the red cushion known as the Woolsack. The Woolsack is a seat stuffed with wool on which the Lord Chancellor sits. It was introduced by King Edward III (1327-77) and originally stuffed with English wool as a reminder of England's traditional source of wealth - the wool trade - and as a sign of prosperity. Today the Woolsack is stuffed with wool from several countries of the Commonwealth, to symbolize unity. In front of this are two similar woolsacks used by judges at the opening of Parliament, and the Table of the House at which the Clerks sit.

The Lords' benches, upholstered in red leather, are arranged on both sides of the House, in five rows divided into three blocks. The Government benches are on the right of the Throne and the Opposition benches on the left. Facing the Woolsack below the Table are the cross benches, used by members who do not belong to any political party.

The House of Lords is the second chamber of the U.K. Houses of Parliament. Members of the House of Lords (known as 'peers') consist of Lords Spiritual (senior bishops and the two archbishops) and Lords Temporal (lay peers). Law Lords (senior judges) also sit as Lords Temporal. The number of spiritual peers is now reduced to 26. They include the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, the Bishops of Durham, London and Winchester, and the 21 next most senior Church of England Bishops.

Members of the House of Lords are not elected. Following the House of Lords Act 1999 there are only 92 peers who sit by virtue of hereditary peerage. The majority of members are now Life Peers and the Government has been consulting on proposals for further reform of the Lords. Some Lords are former Members of the House of Commons who have been elevated to the Lords in recognition of distinguished service in politics or because one of the political parties wishes to have them in the House. People who have especially distinguished themselves in other parts of public life, such as industry, the trade unions, education, science, the arts and local government, are often brought into the House of Lords as life peers. In 1958 the Life Peerages Act was passed, which entitled the Queen to give non-hereditary titles or life peerages to both men and women. One of the life peers is Sean Connery, another is Margaret Thatcher.

There were 700 peers in total in February 2002. The composition of the House of Lords is different from that of the House of Commons. There was traditionally a large number of Conservative peers in the Lords but this is no longer the case since the majority of hereditary peers were excluded from membership of the House following the House of Lords Act 1999.

About two thirds of the Lords align themselves with a political party. A distinctive feature of the House of Lords is the presence of crossbench peers who are not affiliated to any party group.

In general, the functions of the House of Lords are similar to those of the House of Commons in legislating, debating and questioning the executive. There are two important exceptions: members of the Lords do not represent constituencies, and are not involved in matters of taxation and finance. The role of the Lords is generally recognized to be complementary to that of the Commons and it acts as a revising chamber for many of the more important and controversial bills. All bills go through both Houses before becoming Acts, and may start in either House. The House of Commons can present a bill (except one to prolong the life of Parliament) for Royal Assent after one year and in a new session even if the Lords have not given their agreement.

The House of Lords is also the final court of appeal for civil cases in the United Kingdom and for criminal cases in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Only the Lords of Appeal (Law Lords) - of whom there are 12 employed full-time - take part in judicial proceedings.

Sean Connery as a Life Peer