ACCUSED OF CRONYISM, TOP TORY LEADERS SPARK STORM OVER KING’S NEW YEAR HONOURS LIST
By SHAMLAL PURI in London
Senior Editor – UK and Associate Publisher
shamlalpuri4@gmail.com
There were tears of joy as King Charles III honoured more than 1,000 Britons in his traditional New Year Honours list.
But the nation’s overall national excitement was short-circuited amid accusations of political interference, cronyism, debasing the importance of these annual honours and scathing attacks on the honours system.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, among other top leaders, were slammed for tarnishing the image of the honours system.
Sunak was slammed for handing out knighthoods to Tim Martin, the outspoken pubs magnate of the J D Weatherspoons business empire. Stephen Hester, the former boss of the Royal Bank of Scotland, reported the Mirror.
The Trade Unions Congress (TUC) slammed Sunak for giving out the gongs to the two multi-millionaires embroiled in controversies. The honours many Britons did not support. The opposition Labour Party and the Liberal Democrats backed the TUC’s attack on the Prime Minister.
Pub tycoon Martin, 68, backed Britain’s departure from the European Union (Brexit) during the 2016 referendum and is knighted for services to hospitality.
Martin, a Tory party donor, became infamous to his 40,000 staff in the early days of Covid, refusing to pay workers at 875 pubs during the lockdown until the government stepped in with a rescue package covering 80% of the workers’ salaries.
Trade unionists were incensed over the honour given to Martin.
The Mirror, recalling the early days of Covid, quoted Ian Hodson, president of Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union (BFAWU): “Tim Martin’s selfish approach says unless the Government puts money into my bank account today, he’ll let the workers who made him rich suffer.”
Martin bowed to pressure after a public outcry with his critics asking him “to serve your country”.
TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said on X, “Giving an honour to the likes of Tim Martin devalues the world of those who truly contribute to their communities.”
Sarah Woolley, BFAWU general secretary, lamented the “System is corrupt”.
Responding to the honour, Martin said the knighthood came as a surprise.
Wetherspoons insists that all its staff were paid, clearing the record.
Hester, now chair of no-frills airlines easyJet, is knighted for services to business and economy.
He caused controversy while in charge of the public-owned Royal Bank of Scotland in 2012 when he tried to hold on to his £1 million bonus after overseeing 33,000 job losses in just over three years. He gave in and fell back on his £1.2 million salary and £420,000 annual pension.
Hester reportedly claimed that the Royal Bank of Scotland was “in a vastly better position” than when he arrived at the bank’s helm.
Former Prime Minister Liz Truss, who ruled for 49 days and aims to return to Downing Street in the forthcoming general election, went further, sparking a storm of protest when she nominated 14 people in her resignation honours list, but only 11 were approved.
Truss was forced to resign after the fallout from her disastrous mini-budget, becoming the shortest-serving Prime Minister in modern history.
She rewarded those who were personally loyal to her and Brexiteers.
She rewarded Matthew Elliott, former chief executive of Vote Leave (Brexit) and Tory donor Jon Moynihan, its former chairman, with life peerages.
She gave a peerage to her deputy chief of staff, Ruth Porter.
Truss’s close friend, Jackie Doyle-Price, Thurrock MP, who was minister of state for industry, is made Dame. Another Tory donor, novelist Shirley Ida Conran, also becomes a Dame.
MP Alec Shelbrooke, another Truss loyalist and briefly a junior defence minister, is a made a knight.
Former special advisers Diasporan Shabbir Merali and Sophie Jarvis are given CBEs.
Truss said she was “delighted these champions for the conservative causes of freedom, limited government and a proud and sovereign Britain have been suitably honoured.”
Angry Jonathan Ashworth, opposition Labour Party’s shadow cabinet office minister, said Truss’s resignation honours list is “a slap in the face of working people.”
Mr Ashworth said, “This List is a positive proof of Rishi Sunak’s weakness and a slap in the face of working people who are paying the price of the Tories crashing the economy.
“Honours should be for those committed to public service, not rewards for Tory failure. Rather than apologise for crashing the economy and driving up mortgage rates, costing families thousands, Rishi Sunak has nodded through these tarnished gongs because he is too weak to lead a Tory party completely out of touch with working people.
Daisy Cooper, Liberal Decomcrats’ deputy leader, also criticised the awards, describing them as “this shameless move to reward Liz Truss’scar crash cronies”, which “is matched only by Sunak’s weakness in failing to block it.”
“Truss is handing out gongs after blowing a hole in the public finances and leaving families reeling from spiralling mortgage costs,” which only puts “this honours system into disrepute.”
Willie Sullivan, senior director for campaigns at the Electoral Reform Society, said: “It will feel like an insult to many to see Liz Truss handing out peerages to friends and supporters after her disastrously short stint as Prime Minister. It looks like the political class is dishing out rewards for failure at a time when many people are still suffering the effects of her premiership.
“Liz Truss’s resignation honours list also adds yet more peers to the House of Lords, which already has around 800 members, making it the second largest legislative chamber in the world after China’s National People’s Congress.
“This highlights just how rotten and out of control the current peerage system is and why it needs urgent reform.
“This is why we need to replace the bloated and unelected Lords with a smaller elected chamber where the people of this country, not former prime ministers, choose who sits in Parliament making the laws we all live under.”
Controversy aside, as the curtains closed in 2023, more than 1,200 recipients were awarded for their exceptional achievements, focusing on those generously giving to others in need.
The honours system strives to be inclusive of all of the UK society. Of the 1,227 people who receive an award:1,073 candidates have been selected at BEM, MBE and OBE levels, 377 at BEM, 460 at MBE, 236 at OBE
811 (66%) of the recipients are people who have undertaken outstanding work in their communities, either in a voluntary or paid capacity.
A total of 588 women are recognised, representing 48% overall.
The diaspora is partly represented – some 13.8% of the successful candidates come from an ethnic minority background. Of this, 7.4% of recipients are from an Asian ethnic group; 4.8% of recipients are from a black ethnic group; 0.8% of recipients with a mixed ethnic background; 0.6% of recipients come from another ethnic background not listed;
Individuals were recognised for being dedicated community champions, role models in sports, pioneers in the arts, passionate health workers, and supporters of young people.
The Prime Minister said he was committed to ensuring that honours are awarded to people across the whole of the UK so that the honours system captures and celebrates the fantastic contribution of people throughout the country.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said, “The New Year Honours List recognises the exceptional achievements of people across the country and those who have shown the highest commitment to selflessness and compassion. To all honourees, you are the pride of this country and an inspiration to us all.”
Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden said: “This year’s New Year Honours List celebrates the most selfless, compassionate people in the UK.
“Our historic honours system exists to recognise these people and highlight their heroic contributions and achievements. I hope the inspiring stories from across the UK encourage more people to nominate others for an honour in future.”
Former Cabinet Minister Sajid Javid, who served in six cabinet portfolios, is among the top political names honoured with a Knighthood. He was the first Asian cabinet minister who was appointed culture, media and sport Secretary,
He has since served as Home Secretary, Chancellor and Health Secretary. He announced that he would be standing down at the next general election,
Dr Margaret Ebunoluwa Jane Aderin MBE is made a Dame. She is committed to inspiring new generations of astronauts, engineers and scientists through her public engagement company, Science Innovation Ltd, to increase diversity in science.
Amritpal Singh Hungin OBE DL is also honoured. His career spans over 30 years in general practice, mostly in clinical research, working across primary and secondary care. A graduate of Newcastle Medical School, he is an Emeritus Professor of Primary Care and General
Practice there, having formerly been the founding Dean of Medicine at Durham University in 2003. He developed research practices and networks to enhance the evidence and research base of clinical care in general practice and worked to initiate the RCGP Clinical Innovation and Research Centre.
Other awardees include Sarah Graham, who received an MBE for services to Ukrainian refugees. Based in Buckinghamshire, Sarah has brought together over 50 host families and 155 volunteers across several villages through her organisation, Hilltops Ukrainian Support Community.
Beauty industry stalwart Tajinder Banwait, founder of Urban ApothecUrban Apothecary, was awarded an MBE for services to business and the beauty industry.
Jacqueline Savage from County Durham has been awarded an MBE for services to social care. She has worked in children’s education and children’s and adult social care for 30 years. She draws on her own experiences of having a neurological condition to develop staff to ensure that people accessing adult social care receive care of a high standard.
Elizabeth Hall from Kent has been awarded an MBE for tackling hygiene poverty. She founded The Hygiene Bank, which delivered over £300,000 worth of donations during the pandemic. It currently has over 154 active local projects, roughly 2,000 community partners and leads more than 479 volunteers.
Dr John Morrison (Morris) Brown has been awarded a BEM for services to the community in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. He was instrumental in setting up the Castlederg Patient Comfort and Terminally Ill Fund, which has raised more than £500,000 and has supported around 600 local people and families.
Felicity Dahl has been awarded a DBE for services to philanthropy, literature, and young people. She set up Roald Dahl’s Marvellous Children’s Charity in 1991 in memory of Roald Dahl. The charity partners with the NHS to provide specialist nurses and support for seriously ill children living with complex, lifelong conditions.
Tony Hudgell is this year’s youngest recipient. At nine years old, he was awarded a BEM for services to prevent child abuse. He has raised over £1.8m for the hospital, which saved his life after he suffered horrific abuse as a baby. Along with his adoptive mother, he founded the Tony Hudgell Foundation in 2021 to support and help vulnerable children and has also inspired an English law change to increase prison sentences for those convicted of child cruelty and neglect.
Camilla Bowry has been awarded an OBE for services to charity. Camilla is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Sal’s Shoes, based in Surrey, which donates school shoes to needy children. As of November 2021, she had collected over 2,750,000 pairs of shoes and donated them to 52 countries.
Amanda Chadwick from Greater Manchester is the Founder and Trustee of Pyjama Fairies and has been awarded an MBE for services to children in hospital. The charity has given over 50,000 handmade pyjamas to children across 150 hospitals.
Lynne Kelly, based in South Glamorgan, Wales, is Chair and Trustee of Haemophilia Wales and has been awarded a CBE for services to people with haemophilia. Lynne was pivotal to the campaign to produce safe recombinant factor VIII and IX concentrates for the treatment of haemophilia in Wales, the first country in the world to do so.
Diasporan Jahangir Alom has been awarded a BEM for tackling health inequalities, particularly during COVID-19. His efforts helped build public trust in the national vaccination programme and raise awareness of the experiences of ethnic minorities. He also works at Selfless UK, a charity that alleviates rural Bangladesh’s poverty.
Fenella Leach, Chief Medical Officer and Deputy Chief Executive for the London Ambulance Service NHS Trust has been awarded an MBE for services to the NHS. In 2019, she led a collaborative health system that saw Emergency Department conveyance safely reduced by 8%, and 70% of mental health patients were managed nearer home.
Michael Eavis, founder and leader of Glastonbury Festival, has been recognised with a knighthood for services to music and charity. The Festival contributes more than £2 million to charities and good causes each festival year.
Author Kate Mosse has been awarded a CBE for services to literature, women, and charity. She is a champion of diversity and female equality. The Women’s Prize for Fiction, of which she is a co-founder, is now one of the biggest literary prizes in the world.
Stuart Murphy has been awarded a CBE for services to opera. Under his leadership during the pandemic, the English National Opera manufactured scrubs for NHS staff and initiated a clinical recovery programme for COVID-19 survivors.
Dame Shirley Bassey DBE becomes the 64th living member of the Order of the Companion of Honour in recognition of her services to music. She has sold over 135 million records.