51�Թ�

He lives in Thurso, a town which is on the north coast of Scotland and about as far from the Lords as you can be without getting on a boat.

Coffey said after some "time out" she was now ready to apply her "political antennae" to her new role in the House of Lords.

The proposed new law, due to be scrutinised by the House of Lords this month, includes a right to guaranteed hours and cracks down on zero-hour contracts without the offer of work.

One Tory MP said he wrote to a body responsible for vetting nominations to the House of Lords in an attempt to stop Hart from becoming a peer.

It has cleared all of its Commons hurdles and is now being debated in the House of Lords, with Royal Assent expected later.