New Year Honours - Many faces of pandemic knighted/damed.

[brad465]

As per the title the New Year Honours list is out; Chris Whitty was widely speculated to be getting a knighthood and has got one. But Tony Blair getting one and joining the Order of the Garter will go down like a lead balloon:

New Year Honours: Whitty, Van-Tam and Blair knighted, Lumley and Redgrave made dames

Athletes, actresses, campaigners, Tony Blair, a Spice Girl, and an 11-year-old boy are also honoured.

www.bbc.co.uk

Prof Chris Whitty and Prof Jonathan Van-Tam, who became household names during the Covid-19 pandemic, have been knighted in the New Year Honours list.
Both men - who will now have "Sir" before their name - have regularly briefed the nation from Downing Street.
Dr Jenny Harries, chief executive of the UK Health Security Agency, and Dr June Raine, head of the vaccines regulator MHRA, are both made dames.
And Tony Blair is knighted, being appointed to the Order of the Garter.
Unlike the main New Year Honours list, which is advised on by the prime minister's office, the Order of the Garter is a royal appointment.
The former prime minister said it was "an immense honour" and he was "deeply grateful to Her Majesty the Queen".

 

[yorksrob]

Well, former PM's do get one as a matter of course. (Rumour has it John Major had his delayed for scrapping yacht Britannia !)

 

[Gloster]

Not quite as many political donors and time-serving MPs as usual, but they have still slipped a few through.

 

[LOL The Irony]

Oh dear christ. blair? Really?

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

Oh dear christ. blair? Really?

Thought the same thing.

Delighted that Kate Garraway has been given the honour as she really has been in the industry for a good number of years, and I can tell you firsthand she's incredibly down-to-earth and kind in real life too.

 

[seagull]

Aka the "how out of touch with reality can we be" list.

 

[birchesgreen]

Good, Blair should get a knighthood if we are going to have these kinds of awards and the criteria used.

 

[Dai Corner]

Good, Blair should get a knighthood if we are going to have these kinds of awards and the criteria used.

Obviously the Queen agrees with you as it wàs her personal decision (as opposed to him being nominated and selected like nearly all the others).

 

[birchesgreen]

I'm sure the regime are happy with the decision, nice dead cat to deflect from other news. Of course the royals themselves need this as well at the moment.

 

[SteveM70]

Emma Raducanu?!? For services to tennis, at age 19? Yes, she did really well and won a big tournament but dishing out an MBE is ridiculous

 

[AM9]

Emma Raducanu?!? For services to tennis, at age 19? Yes, she did really well and won a big tournament but dishing out an MBE is ridiculous

It's as valid as giving business owners awards for making profit out of the rest of us.

Obviously the Queen agrees with you as it wàs her personal decision (as opposed to him being nominated and selected like nearly all the others).

Better than being selected for their political value to the sitting government.

 

[Typhoon]

Obviously the Queen agrees with you as it wàs her personal decision (as opposed to him being nominated and selected like nearly all the others).

It may be that Blair has given the Queen private advice and support over the years and she seeks to recognise that, particularly as she will be aware that the award would be somewhat controversial and knowing that her decisions are less likely to be questioned than a successor.

She will also be more conscious of her own mortality following the demise of her husband and, if she wanted him recognised, now was the time to do it!

 

[AM9]

Y

It may be that Blair has given the Queen private advice and support over the years and she seeks to recognise that, particularly as she will be aware that the award would be somewhat controversial and knowing that her decisions are less likely to be questioned than a successor.

She will also be more conscious of her own mortality following the demise of her husband and, if she wanted him recognised, now was the time to do it!

You're probably right. Expecting politicians of another persuasion to be objective about an erstwhile opponent is naive.

 

[J-2739]

Emma Raducanu?!? For services to tennis, at age 19? Yes, she did really well and won a big tournament but dishing out an MBE is ridiculous

It wasn't just any old big tournament though...

 

[MotCO]

It may be that Blair has given the Queen private advice and support over the years and she seeks to recognise that, particularly as she will be aware that the award would be somewhat controversial and knowing that her decisions are less likely to be questioned than a successor.

She will also be more conscious of her own mortality following the demise of her husband and, if she wanted him recognised, now was the time to do it!

I don't think any serving PM or Opposition leader would have nominated Blair, but he was blocking the normal 'reward' for past PMs - Brown, Cameron and May can now be knighted to join all bar one of the previous PMs who have been knighted since leaving office.

I think you are probably right that he has helped the Queen in some private capacity. He has received the Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter by Her Majesty, the oldest and most senior British Order of Chivalry, which is a personal award rather than a political award. Having said that, I think that he is far from deserving a political knighthood, and I hate to think how Cherie will now preen herself.

Emma Raducanu?!? For services to tennis, at age 19? Yes, she did really well and won a big tournament but dishing out an MBE is ridiculous

What will happen if she wins another tennis competition? It was obviously a good win, but far too early in her career to award her an MBE.

 

[The Ham]

Tony Blair being knighted is worth every penny for the enormous social media meltdown from the hard left and hard right last night.

Tony Blair getting a knighthood under a Tory PM shows that Tories only look after their own!!!

 

[Typhoon]

Tony Blair getting a knighthood under a Tory PM shows that Tories only look after their own!!!

I was under the impression that the award had been given by the Queen. I would be surprised if Johnson would willingly nominate any of his predecessors.

I don't think any serving PM or Opposition leader would have nominated Blair, but he was blocking the normal 'reward' for past PMs - Brown, Cameron and May can now be knighted to join all bar one of the previous PMs who have been knighted since leaving office.

Theresa May is already Lady May, of course (though her husbands 'achievements' rather than her own). The exception? I thought it was Chamberlain (who died shortly after leaving office) but I didn't think McDonald ever became Sir James, I may be wrong.

To be honest I am rather hoping that May sticks around for a few years (in the same way that Heath did, but more constructively), her time in the highest office did not go well but I think, at heart, she is a decent politician who can be a focal point for moderate Conservatism.

 

[The Ham]

I was under the impression that the award had been given by the Queen. I would be surprised if Johnson would willingly nominate any of his predecessors.

My comment was more a tongue in cheek comment about how close Tony Blair was to Tories than "traditional" Labour.

 

[37424]

I don't have a problem with Blair being given a knighthood, I voted for him on 3 elections, was he wrong on iraq possibly but its easy to be wise after the event, he tuck Labour far enough to the right to be elected something which the Labour party forgot with Corbyn, and his government introduced the minimum wage which the Tories were against at the time, that alone probably benefited millions in this country.

I expect Emma has probably done more for tennis over the past six months in terms of improving its popularity than even Andy Murray winning Wimbledon did in 2013, and as she is the 1st British Women (and far as I'm concerned she British whatever the anti's might say) to Win a Grand Slam for over 40 years so I don't have a problem with her being awarded an OBE.

 

[Typhoon]

My comment was more a tongue in cheek comment about how close Tony Blair was to Tories than "traditional" Labour.

I'm not so sure about that - some of his policies have been taken up by later Conservative administrations but were opposed at the time: minimum wage, LGBT rights, increased maternity and paternity rights, increased spending on health, education and early years. There was also devolution and Lords reform. I'm not pretending it was all good by some considerable way (even ignoring the car crash that was foreign policy), PFI and chumminess with the banks for instance, but I reckon he achieved more than Callaghan. He is 180 degrees away from Johnson on Europe but he isn't that far away from 'Call Me Dave' because Cameron wasn't traditional Conservative. You are right about Blair not being close to "traditional" Labour but "traditional" Labour had lost four General Elections.

He is always going to be a Labour Bete Noir but, other than Atlee and leaders who never won anything, I don't know who isn't!

... and as she is the 1st British Women (and far as I'm concerned she British whatever the anti's might say) to Win a Grand Slam for over 40 years so I don't have a problem with her being awarded an OBE.

The anti's would need to decide which of her predecessors as UK no 1 were British; there are question marks over the last five, the last who undoubtedly fits the bill was Katie O'Brien, who, I'm sorry, I don't remember.

 

[LOL The Irony]

was he wrong on iraq possibly but its easy to be wise after the event

1. he wasn't "possibly" wrong on Iraq, he was wrong
2. he was wise before the event, it was him who told Bush jr

 

[Trackman]

I expect Emma has probably done more for tennis over the past six months in terms of improving its popularity than even Andy Murray winning Wimbledon did in 2013, and as she is the 1st British Women (and far as I'm concerned she British whatever the anti's might say) to Win a Grand Slam for over 40 years so I don't have a problem with her being awarded an OBE.

I agree and is encouraging to others.
Her first US open and had to do all those qualifying rounds - no break it was part of the tournament and did not drop a single set.
That is an incredible achievement, imagine what the odds beforehand.

--
As for Blair.. well, enough has been said and a lot of people do not forget. As for Dr David Kelly ... well ... he was up for a knighthood apparently too.

 

[37424]

1. he wasn't "possibly" wrong on Iraq, he was wrong
2. he was wise before the event, it was him who told Bush jr

Well yes he was wrong on WMD but whether he was wrong to go to war with Iraq I think is more debatable.

 

[Acfb]

Blair really should have stood down in 2005 IMO. I think he would have a better reputation despite Iraq if he had done that as he mainly sullied his reputation in the last two years with stuff like 90 days detention. I also don't like this rewriting of history of the 2005-07 period as people like Tom Watson also tried to get rid of Blair.

 

[JamesT]

What will happen if she wins another tennis competition? It was obviously a good win, but far too early in her career to award her an MBE.

As a comparison, Andy Murray got his OBE (one step up from MBE) after winning the US Open and the Olympics in 2012, then was knighted in 2017 after winning Wimbledon twice.
So there’s scope for further honours if she turns out to have a stellar career.
Given how infrequently we’ve had success in tennis, it seems churlish not to celebrate it when it happens.

 

[yorksrob]

Strongly agreed

If I were designing a country from scratch I wouldn't design it the way that the UK is (nobody would!), but given that we have a Monarch and House Of Lords and various Honours then it makes perfect sense to recognise the contribution made by a guy who was leader for ten years

In fact I'd go one further and say that, if you accept that we are going to have an unelected second chamber then anyone who's served as Prime Minister should be automatically entitled to House Of Lords membership once they step down as an MP - if the idea is that the HoL is to be a place where experienced and knowledgeable people are able to debate laws then why wouldn't you want people who've had the experience of running the country? Blair (and Major, Brown, Cameron etc) ought to have a seat on the red benches reserved for him - much better to have their perspective on Government than having former PMs travelling the world making money from doing speeches whilst the second chamber is filled with people from the Upper Classes who've never won any public vote in their life

As ever though, it's a case of "argue about a couple of high profile celebrities who've got awards in the Honours List then wait a fortnight for Private Eye to come out and find out about the dozens of shady businesspeople who've donated large sums to political parties to secure their gong, and realise that such people vastly outnumber the handful of worthy people picked to give the Honours a veneer of respectability"



It as beautiful to watch - all the people who were celebrating Corbyn winning a Times radio poll for "Best PM We Never Had" were outraged that a guy who won three elections for Labour was being recognised - love to see a meltdown like that - well played Ma'am

I largely agree with your assessment of the honours system.

In terms of best PM we never had, Dennis Healey would have to be up there.

 

[backontrack]

In terms of best PM we never had, Dennis Healey would have to be up there.

And I'd give the standard answer: John Smith.

I'm very much not a fan of Blair - I'd cross the road if I saw him in the street. I'm one of those incomprehensible, utterly delusional, left-wing cranks who thinks he sold the soul of the Labour party, so I doubt my views amount to the proverbial hill of beans among the regular contributors'. But ultimately, if you're going to have an honours list and all of these special distinctions and royal commendations, and all of these shenanigans, then it'd be asinine not to include a former prime minister, especially if they'd spent ten years in power and won three general elections. Surely these categories were made for people like Blair! It shouldn't be a shock to anyone. I think, if anything, the surprise is that anyone Labour is even receiving commendation given there's likely some degree of ministerial input in there somewhere. (To be quite honest, I was surprised he wasn't already Sir Tony.)

While we're on the subject of honours for Labour's right wing, Frank Field is being made a Companion of Honour.

(New Year Honours: Political veteran Frank Field given exclusive honour - BBC News)

A former minister who served as an MP for 40 years is to receive one of the UK's most exclusive accolades in the New Year's Honours list.

Lord Field of Birkenhead - formerly Frank Field - becomes a Companion of Honour, a title shared by a maximum of 65 people at one time.
He joins figures including musicians Sir Paul McCartney and Sir Elton John, and author JK Rowling.
Lord Field said it was a "lovely thought" to be added.

Tony Blair getting a knighthood under a Tory PM shows that Tories only look after their own!!!

We don't know how much input and support behind the scenes Blair gave the Royals at the time of Diana's death.

Ooh, good point.

 

[trainophile]

I liked Frank Field. I believe he is sadly terminally ill. Glad he has had recognition, and not posthumously.

 

[nw1]

Yes, he seemed like a capable leader. Would he have got labour over the line, without having quite the panache of Tony Blair is an interesting one to ponder.

Given how very unpopular the Tories were from about late 1992 onwards, and given John Smith was pretty likable, I suspect he would have easily won, yes.

To be politically even, I'm inclined to think that William Hague might have made a good P.M. but led the party at the wrong time.

I'm not a Tory but - definitely better than Cameron and Johnson.

 

[backontrack]

And I'll retort that he's the only Labour leader who has made them electable in the last 45 years. It rather depends what you want from Labour: getting in to Government and having a chance to change things, or standing in the wilderness ranting and raving about left-wing policies that the majority of the population don't want.

My point is that I don't like him yet I understand the New Year's Honours nomination all the same. No need for the same old bland "blah blah blah, Left bad" tripe. You don't have to take the party as far right as Blair did to get into power, though that's a discussion for another thread.

What are peoples' thoughts on Daniel Craig receiving a CMG honour? (Only unpaywalled article I could find was the NME, bizarrely)

Daniel Craig receives same title as James Bond in New Year Honours list (nme.com)
Daniel Craig has been awarded the title of Companion of the Order of St. Michael and St. George in the New Year Honours list.

The honour – which the actor received for his services to film and theatre – is the same one given to James Bond, the fictional spy Craig’s played since 2006’s Casino Royale, in the 007 franchise. Bond has a CMG in Ian Fleming’s books as well as their film adaptations.

Companion of the Order of St. Michael and St. George recognises service in a foreign country, or in relation to foreign and Commonwealth affairs, such as the work of diplomats overseas.

The 53-year-old actor made his final outing as Bond earlier this year with the long-awaited No Time To Die, which made more than £96million at the UK box office this year, making it the third highest grossing film of all time. It’s also the fourth biggest film of the year globally, taking $774million (£575million) to date.

Prior to the film’s release, Craig was made an honorary commander in the Royal Navy, another rank held by James Bond. The appointment reflected his personal support for UK Armed Forces.

Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson, the producer/caretakers of the James Bond movie franchise, were also among the many public figures to have been recognised in the 2022 New Year Honours list. They both received the honour of Commanders of the Order of the British Empire.

How does the bit from Yes, Minister go? CMG means 'Call Me God', KCMG means 'Kindly Call Me God', and GCMG stands for 'God Calls Me God'