Non-affiliated members of the House of Lords are peers who do not belong to any parliamentary group in the House of Lords of the United Kingdom. They do not take a political party's whip, nor affiliate to the crossbench group, nor are they Lords Spiritual (active Church of England bishops). Formerly, the Lords of Appeal in Ordinary were also a separate affiliation, but due to the creation of the Supreme Court, were disqualified from sitting in the Lords until they no longer hold judicial office.
Most non-party Lords Temporal are crossbenchers. Peers may also be required to sit as non-affiliated while they hold certain senior positions within the Lords (e.g. the senior deputy speaker), as a means to preserve the neutrality of their official roles. Some members become non-affiliated after resigning or being expelled from a party, either through a political disagreement or after a scandal such as the 2009 parliamentary expenses scandal. Others have had no party allegiance and chose this designation rather than joining the crossbench.
A member who is elected as Lord Speaker must withdraw from any party affiliation, but is not considered to be a non-affiliated peer. Former lord speakers have sat as crossbenchers after holding office.
The UK Parliament website lists the following non-affiliated members of the House of Lords, including those not currently eligible to sit in the Lords:
There are other peers who list themselves as Independent within the House of Lords:
| Name | Prior affiliation | Designation | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lord Maginnis of Drumglass | UUP | Independent Ulster Unionist | Resigned from party whip following homophobic remarks. Currently suspended from the Lords | |
| Lord Stevens of Ludgate | UKIP | Conservative Independent | Expelled from Conservative whip in 2004 for supporting UKIP, sat as Conservative Independent until 2012 | |
MPs and Members of the Lords do not have to belong to a political party. Instead, MPs can sit as Independents and Lords can sit as Crossbenchers or Independents.