Would You like a feature Interview?
All Interviews are 100% FREE of Charge
The bar for political honor is too low and the government has been warned it risks undermining the system without reform.
Number 10 faces a backlash after being unexpectedly left out of the honors list, which includes Tory MPs and businessmen who have donated £5m to the party.
The addition of Sir Mohamed Mansour, the Conservative party treasurer and knighthood, has led to widespread claims that the system is “undermined” by the frequency with which political donors are given gongs.
Fewer than 10 sources pointed to Sir Mohammed’s track record of philanthropy, public life or political service.
However, David Howarth, a former election commissioner and former Liberal Democrat MP, argued that the system in which the prime minister bestows titles and knighthoods should be reviewed.
Professor Howarth, a professor of political science, is also a member of the British Governance Project, which is calling for reform to how the honors system works, along with former attorney general Dominic Grieve and Labor veteran Margaret Hodge.
He said if people perceive awards to be in exchange for money, it “completely undermines the concept of honors. One is that honors recognize people’s achievements and contributions to the community. It’s a great, inexpensive method.”
He argued that the issue of political titles (nobles appointed to the House of Lords) was a “big problem” because the House of Lords had a law-making role, stressing the need for an independent system. .
And for lower honors such as knighthoods and peerages: “If you can earn the honors without actually achieving anything other than funding a political party, that defeats the purpose of the honors system.” said.
One of the recommendations made by the British Governance Project was to take decisions out of the Prime Minister’s hands, removing the temptation to reward party donors with gongs.
Professor Howarth said: I: “The Prime Minister should not be involved in the system, and political honors should not be treated any differently from anyone else, but should be treated in conjunction with official honors.”
“The Prime Minister should not have a say in who gets these and the level of achievement should be on par with other areas. They can’t just do their jobs.
“Some junior MPs are knighted just because they are junior MPs, even though they should have won an Olympic medal in sports, an Oscar in the film industry, or a Nobel Prize.”
He added: “Of course, those involved in politics and public life should also be eligible for the honor, but only to the same standards that apply to everyone else: extraordinary achievements and accomplishments.” Ta.
Lord Hayward, a polling expert and Conservative peer, said he believed the honors system needed reform.
He spoke on BBC Radio 4’s program, although he admitted Sir Mohammed was involved in a range of charity work as well as funding the Conservative Party. A world united: “Literally thousands of very deserving people are being honored and it is a shame that they are tied up with others who have questions.
“Not only should we reform the honor system for obtaining knighthood, but we should reform the titles as well.”
He said Conservative peerage Lord Norton introduced legislation last year that aimed to ensure that only those with “outstanding achievements” could receive “peerage status”.
“I think a similar system of approval by someone on the non-political side should be adopted for other honors when there is a potential conflict of interest.
“The vast majority of people who receive knighthoods, which are considered the ‘cash of honours’, actually probably donate far more money to major charities of all kinds.” […] They don’t just make a big song and dance to it.
“But I think we need a more transparent identification system to make sure we don’t vilify people.”
The surprise honors list, announced on Thursday night before the Easter weekend, sparked criticism from Labor.
On Friday, party chairwoman Anneliese Dodds said the honors system should be used as a way to reward people for their “contribution to the life of the nation.”
He insisted big donors would not be given an “automatic pass” to receive the honours, even if Labor won government, but went so far as to exclude gongs of those who supported the party. I didn’t.
In response to this question, she told Sky News: “People who make large donations to political parties should not automatically be rewarded in this way.
“The concern here is that we have a man who was making the largest ever donation to the Conservative Party as of January last year, £5 million last January, and now he has been given the largest donation ever by the Prime Minister. I have received awards.”
Mr Dodds also said Labor had learned from the “honours for cash” debate under Tony Blair, when he was investigated three times as part of police investigations into the sale of royalties in 2006.
“We think it is very important to have a system that goes beyond public questioning and censure. I don’t think it can be surpassed,” she told GB News.
Downing Street officials claimed the timing of the honors announcement was due to the need for appointments to the Privy Council, including Vaughan Gething, the new First Minister of Wales.