The Honours Dishonoured

The honours system once again proved how pernicious the class system still is in the UK. It was noticeable in this New Years Honours List, that the famous, the rich, the powerful, and the political establishment, are given Knighthoods, or are made Dames, while those who are not in the top 0.01% of society are not.

This was nicely illustrated by the fact that MP's, Anne McGuire and David Amess, both got top honours i.e. she became a Dame, and he was Knighted ... Who are they? What have they ever done except be voting lobby fodder? Who knows .... possibly not even them .... certainly they have never held high office that I am aware of.

Similarly the comic 'actor' James Corden, a man whose career up until the age of 36 (if a couple of years of low level fame is a ''career'), has gained him a OBE 'for his work in film and television'. Some people work 30 years, saving people's lives or making a difference, to get a similar medal. e.g A lady who has given more than four decades of dedicated service to the Scouting movement in Romford, Essex, was made an MBE.

Dr Campbell, the inventor of Viagra in 1985 was only made a Knight in this year's honours. Only 30 years after his initial  research into blood pressure led to Viagra in 1998.

There are even super upgrades for the top elite. .. .. Baroness Ashton the former EU foreign policy chief got an upgrade to the highest class of the Order of Saint Michael and Saint George ... obviously her Baronetcy wasn't enough reward. While the inventor of the wind up radio Trevor Baylis has now got a CBE to add to his OBE ... No step up for him .... next stop an MBE?. He's obviously not the right stuff, unlike the clothes designer Mary Quant who was also made a Dame.

The lower awards invariably go to the 99.9% of us who are not in the elite 0.01% ..... but lets not forget that the same 'honours' system gave us:

• Sir James Savile OBE, KCSG ~ Paedophile.
• Sir Fred Goodwin ~ Goodwin's knighthood, awarded in 2004 for "services to banking", was "cancelled and annulled" on 1 February 2012 ~ remains a millionaire.
• Sir Jeffrey Archer ~ Resigned as MP resigned over a financial scandal which left him almost bankrupt. Later resigned as chairman of Conservative party after another scandal, conviction and subsequent imprisonment for perjury and perverting the course of justice ~ remains a millionaire.
• Baron Hanningfield ~was convicted of false accounting in the Parliamentary Expenses scandal and sent to prison. Following his release, he resumed his parliamentary career as an independent peer.
• Baron Taylor ~ Found guilty by the jury on six counts of false accounting, relating to the Parliamentary Expenses scandal and sent to prison. Disbarred from practising Law.

The Queen Often Forced To 'Honour' The Undeserving ......

and finally ....

• Sir Robert Mugabe ~ In 1994, Mugabe was appointed an honorary Knight Grand Cross in the Order of the Bath by Queen Elizabeth II. On 25 June 2008, the Queen cancelled and annulled the honorary knighthood after advice from the Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom. "This action has been taken as a mark of revulsion at the abuse of human rights and abject disregard for the democratic process in Zimbabwe over which President Mugabe has presided."

........ enough said.

Just for the record for those who don't understand them, these are the Commonly Awarded Ranks:

• Companion of Honour - Limited to 65 people. Recipients wear the initials CH after their name
• Knight or Dame - Top honour
  
• CBE - Commander of the Order of the British Empire
• OBE - Officer of the Order of the British Empire
• MBE - Member of the Order of the British Empire
• BEM - British Empire Medal

..... yeah, I know, we haven't got any empire anymore .... its just one more part of the anachronism.