Sir Gary Verity; why honours system needs reform – The Yorkshire Post says
This has seen an outcry over the decision to make Tony Blair a Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, an award that was in the Queen’s personal gift, and confirmation that it will require an Act of Parliament to strip Lord Nazir Ahmed of his title after his conviction over historic child sex offences.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdFor many years, there have been calls for the secretive work of the Forfeiture Committee – part of the Cabinet Office – to become more transparent to end the type of anomalies that saw jockey Lester Piggott, rightly, stripped of his OBE over tax evasion while author Jeffrey Archer kept his peerage after being jailed for perjury.
This is important if the wider integrity of public honours is to be maintained so those community heroes, who come to regard this formal Royal recognition as the proudest day of their lives, can continue to be celebrated and lauded.
Rightly, last week’s New Year honours were largely defined by those who answered their country’s call over Covid and the inspirational 11-year-old Tobias Weller, from Sheffield, who became the youngest ever recipient of a BEM after overcoming cerebral palsy and autism to complete a number of fundraising walks and challenges. The day such stories of hope are totally eclipsed by cronyism and other controversies will also be the day that further reform is required.
Support The Yorkshire Post and become a subscriber today. Your subscription will help us to continue to bring quality news to the people of Yorkshire. In return, you’ll see fewer ads on site, get free access to our app, receive exclusive members-only offers and access to all premium content and columns. Click here to subscribe.
Comment Guidelines
National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.