Bishop of Birmingham takes seat in House of Lords

The Bishop of Birmingham has taken his seat in the House of Lords.

The Rt Rev David Urquhart, 58, replaces the Bishop of Bradford, the Rt Rev David James, who has retired.

Bishop Urquhart, who has been in the post since 2006, was supported as he took his oath by the bishops of London and Wakefield.

There are 26 places reserved for bishops in the House of Lords. Five sit in the Lords because of the positions they hold - the archbishops of Canterbury and York and the bishops of Durham, Winchester and London - while the remaining 21 are the country's longest serving diocesan bishops.