Theresa May’s resignation honours list rewards failure, say critics
‘This is staff and cronies reaping the rewards of failure’
THERESA MAY was last night accused of “rewarding failure” by handing out honours to her chief Brexit negotiator and Downing Street aides.
The former prime minister was also accused of “abusing the system” by issuing a resignation honours list longer than Harold Wilson’s “Lavender List”.
Olly Robbins, her Europe adviser and chief Brexit negotiator, was rewarded with a knighthood despite being blamed for her thrice-rejected Brexit deal. Last night it emerged he will join Goldman Sachs as a managing director. Writing to the advisory committee on business appointments to seek approval for the job, Mr Robbins said he “does not believe he holds any commercially sensitive information about the current state of [Brexit] negotiations”.
Sir Kim Darroch, the former ambassador to the US who stepped down after leaked cables in which he called Donald Trump “inept”, is awarded a peerage.
Nick Timothy and Fiona Hill, Mrs May’s former chiefs of staff who quit after the 2017 election, were appointed CBE. Gavin Barwell, who succeeded them, will become a peer. Knighthoods have also been awarded to David Lidington, Mrs May’s de facto deputy; and Robbie Gibb, her communications chief. Jon Trickett, shadow Cabinet Office minister, said: “This is staff and cronies reaping the rewards of failure.”
Nigel Farage, the leader of the Brexit Party, said the list represents a “reward for selling our country down the river”.
The list also features Conservative donors Ehud Sheleg, David Brownlow and Rami Ranger. George Hollingbery, a close ally who served as Mrs May’s parliamentary private secretary, receives a knighthood. Brandon Lewis, former Tory chairman, is made a CBE.
Charles Walker, of the 1922 Committee, has a knighthood and Julian Smith, her chief whip and now Northern Ireland Secretary, is made a CBE.
England cricket stalwarts Geoffrey Boycott and Andrew Strauss are to be rewarded with knighthoods.
THERESA MAY has made an aboutturn on her promise to scale back the resignation honours, as she handed out more peerages than David Cameron did on leaving Downing Street.
The former prime minister awarded 19 peerages and 41 other honours, two years after pledging in her 2017 election manifesto: “We will review the honours system to make sure it commands public confidence, rewards genuine public service and that recipients uphold the integrity of the honours bestowed.”
Instead, Mrs May rewarded her political aides and staff in Downing Street at Chequers as well as her sporting hero Geoffrey Boycott in her resignation honours list.
Mrs May has likened herself to Mr Boycott in the past. Last year she said: “One of my cricket heroes was always Geoffrey Boycott. And what did you know about Geoffrey Boycott? Geoffrey Boycott stuck to it and he got the runs in the end.” Andrew Strauss, the former England cricket captain, and Boycott both received knighthoods for services to sport.
Cressida Dick, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, has been appointed a dame while Lady Justice Hallett, the vice-president of the Court of Appeal Criminal Division, is to be a life peer.
Mrs May has also handed out honours to the head chef of Chequers, the Prime Minister’s country residence, and the Downing Street housekeeper.
Dr Deborah Milligan, a GP in Swallowfield Medical Practice, was appointed OBE and Ian Gallen, endocrinologist at Royal Berkshire Hospital, was made a CBE. Dr Gallen treated the former Olympic rower Sir Steve Redgrave for diabetes, a condition he shares with Mrs May.
John Mann, who announced at the weekend he was quitting the Labour party to become a Government antisemitism “tsar”, has been nominated for a life peerage.
Sir Alistair Graham, the former chair of the Committee on Standards in Pub
lic Life, said: “It really is abuse of the system when they use a resignation honours system to cover everybody from their close allies to all sorts of people who are just doing their jobs.
“I think it is deplorable that retiring prime ministers are allowed to have an honours list on such a scale.
“I am rather surprised that someone of Theresa May’s integrity has fallen into this trap.
“You think she would have learnt from her predecessors’ mistakes, going back to Harold Wilson.”
Sir Alistair said the House of Lords was a “scandal in its own right which has been long overdue for reform” adding: “It was a failure of herself [Theresa May] and her predecessors that they have never had the courage to get to grips with it.”
Mrs May’s resignation honours list has rewarded 60 people in total. Mr Cameron rewarded 62 people, including 16 peerages, and Gordon Brown’s 2010 dissolution honours list featured 58 people.
Sir John Major’s 1997 resignation honours and peerage list included 98 people, which included about 30 peerages proposed by Tony Blair.
A source close to Mrs May said she is a longserving MP who wanted to reward people she had worked with. The source said: “This list recognises the many different people who have made a significant contribution to public life during Theresa May’s political career. “It includes not only political colleagues but members of the civil service, civic society, the NHS and the sporting world. Jeremy Corbyn nominated three new Labour life peers – Christine Blower, the ex-national Union of Teachers general secretary, Newport City Council leader Debbie Wilcox, and John Hendy QC, the employment rights lawyer. Natalie Bennett, the former Green Party leader, has also been nominated for a peerage.