Consumer champion Martin Lewis has revealed that his application to become a member of the House of Lords has been rejected.
Lewis, who is considered one of Britain’s most trusted people, said he believed his application for inter-bank nobility was rejected because he was honest about the limited time he could devote to the role.
In an interview with the BBC’s Political Thinking podcast, Lewis expressed his desire for a “more consensual co-operative policy”.
The 50-year-old founder of the Money Saving Expert website has become increasingly vocal in recent months on behalf of economically widespread consumers and households, amid rising inflation and a cost-of-living crisis.
“I never attack conservatives, I attack government policies,” he said.
He told the podcast, presented by political journalist Nick Robinson, that he was a member of the Liberal Democrats until the age of 24, but had since been a floating voter.
He said his attempt to become an independent couple was rejected by the House of Lords nomination committee.
When asked if he wanted a nobility, he said, “In fact, a couple of weeks ago I was rejected again.” He added: “I did something very silly and I was honest in the interview.”
He said he told the commission he could only offer a limited number of hours. “I am very busy with my job, but the most important thing is that I have a nine-year-old daughter and until the age of 13, my most important job from 6.30pm to 8pm is to be with her and put her to bed.
“I see that my role is to be learning for three or five years, with a limited contribution and then gradually over the next five or ten years devoting more time to the House of Lords.”
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Lewis suggested that this could have been an obstacle to his application, although he said the commission had invited him to apply again in the future.
“I don’t think he was willing to give them the time they thought they needed to be in the Lords.”
In an extensive interview, Lewis also revealed that he was subjected to anti-Semitic abuse when he was a schoolboy in Chester: “There were two Jews a year. And my nickname was Jewish. And at first, I think, it was something like that. [the actor and comedian] Jerry Lewis or something a little warmer. And then, as it works, it shortened. “
A House of Lords spokesman told the BBC that the appointments “were not determined by family or caring circumstances” and that “some very good candidates” were rejected.