and created life peers. Upon taking their seats, every one of them joined the crossbenches. The fact that the type of people considered by the Commission for peers were to be neither aristocratic nor members of the "political class" led some in the British media to describe those it was to appoint as "people's peers". This term has never been a formal classification. The purpose of the reform was to make the process more open and those making appointments more accountable. Upon the establishment of the Commission, the Prime Minister Tony Blair said it would ensure a House of Lords that was "more representative of our diverse society"; suitable candidates would be sought "in a wider field than up to now". Following the first set of appointments in April 2001, it was, however, pointed out that those chosen included several knights as well as leading academics and scientists, having much the same establishment background that would have been made peers anyway. The Labour MP Diane Abbott described them as "the metropolitan elite". Appointments The people recommended for appointment as life peers by the Commission since its establishment are listed below, by date of recommendation. 26 April 2001 Victor Adebowale CBE Richard Best OBE Amir Bhatia OBE Sir John Browne Michael Chan MBE Sir Paul Condon QPM Ilora Finlay Susan Greenfield CBE Sir David Hannay GCMG CH Valerie Howarth Lady Howe of Aberavon CBE Sir Robert May OM AC Sir Claus Moser KCB CBE Sir Herman Ouseley Sir Stewart Sutherland KT 1 May 2004 Sir Alec Broers Nicola Chapman Sir Ewen Cameron Frances D'Souza CMG PC Elaine Murphy Lola Young OBE Diljit Rana MBE 22 March 2005 Dame Rennie Fritchie DBE General Sir David Ramsbotham GCB CBE 22 July 2005 Dame Ruth Deech DBE Michael Hastings CBE Sir Martin Rees OM Adair Turner Jo Valentine 3 May 2006 Colin Low CBE Sir David Rowe-Beddoe Dame Elizabeth Butler-Sloss GBE Sir Geoffrey Dear QPM Kamlesh Patel OBE Karan Bilimoria CBE Molly Meacher 15 February 2007 Paul Bew Dame Jane Campbell DBE Jean Coussins Khalid Hameed CBE Sir John Krebs Andrew Mawson OBE 18 October 2007 Haleh Afshar OBE Sir Nicholas Stern 18 April 2008 The Hon. Dame Eliza Manningham-Buller DCB Sir John Mogg KCMG Sir Robert Smith 29 September 2008 Susan Campbell CBE David Pannick QC 13 July 2009 Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks Dame Nuala O'Loan DBE 5 February 2010 Sir Michael Bichard