Politics students at a school near Sudbury got a first-hand insight into the workings of the House of Lords after a visit from a Tory peer.

Lord Balfe was a guest at Thomas Gainsborough School in Great Cornard and spoke of his role in the Lords before answering questions on Brexit, Ireland’s abortion referendum and Donald Trump.

Wayne Lloyd, headteacher, said: “We would like to thank Lord Balfe for taking the time to come and spend an afternoon with students as well as offering a brilliant insight into how the House of Lords works.”

Lord Balfe’s visit was part of the Peers in Schools programme which sends members of the House of Lords into schools to explain its day-to-day workings.

Offering advice to the teenagers in the audience, Lord Balfe said: “Do something useful in society.

“You can be the generation that sees that war is hopeless, that it’s an unacceptable way of dealing with things. Tolerance of a better society is just as much your job as the next person’s.”