THE Bishop of Blackburn has been introduced to the House of Lords.

The Rt Rev. Julian Henderson is now one of the 26 senior Church of England priests to be a member of Parliament’s Upper House.

He said: “I have been very touched by the prayers and good wishes for my introduction into the House of Lords.

"To be entrusted with this privilege and responsibility is an honour which I take very seriously.

“It will no doubt take some time to become used to the workings of the Lords, to learn how much time I should give to its agenda and what implications there are for us as a Diocese.

“I am looking forward to being a new voice for the county; to engaging in debates on matters of public interest from a Christian perspective and to joining other Lords Spiritual and Lords Temporal in holding the Government of the day to account.”

The Rt Rev. Henderson was supported by his wife Heather and family members from the gallery and introduced by the Bishops of Carlisle and St Albans.