Dressed in ermine for the traditional ceremony, he was introduced as Lord Deighton of Carshalton in Surrey, so he can also take up a post as a Government Minister in January.

His appointment as Commercial Secretary to the Treasury, announced in the summer reshuffle, sees him take charge of the delivery of UK infrastructure.

Today he was introduced as a Baron to the House of Lords by London 2012 chairman and fellow Conservative peer Sebastian Coe and by Labour's Lord Mitchell.

Deighton spoke only to swear an oath of allegiance and then signed up to the Lords code of conduct.