Author Archives: Sandra Fayle

Honour only those who have really earned it

By Sandra Fayle | Sun 14th March 2021 - 4:52 pm

Some four and half years ago I wrote to Liberal Democrat Voice about the abuse of the honours system. I wanted Tim Farron to take a moral lead, abjure hierarchical honours and not nominate anyone for more than a BEM. My article The political honours system is sick, possibly fatally was published and drew a little interest but quickly dropped off the radar.

The time has come to revive the issue. Earlier this week the Times published a report that civil servants are actually coaching companies like Serco on the most effective way to obtain honours such as MBEs for their staff. What kind of an honours list this will produce later in the year does, to my mind, not bear thinking about.

Is this who we should really be honouring in this horrendous year? Surely the only appropriate use of the system is to devote it entirely to the front line workers and volunteers who have kept the country safe and maintained as much normality for the rest of us as possible. NHS staff, care home workers, the emergency services, teachers, shop workers, local authority and public transport employees and volunteers should be the people honoured in 2021. While there are perhaps groups I have missed off my list, no politicians, chief executives, senior civil servants, senior managers or contractors who will already be rewarded through their pay packets, should receive honours.

Posted in Op-eds | Tagged honours list | 8 Comments

The political honours system is sick, possibly fatally

By Sandra Fayle | Mon 8th August 2016 - 12:30 pm

I lost my job following the General Election of May 2015 after nearly 35 years of working in and around politics. MPs are not generally held in high esteem but in my experience, they are overwhelmingly decently motivated.

An exception is the blind spot of political parties, including on occasion the Lib Dems, for the political honours system.

Lynton Crosby, said to have been paid £500,000 for his work on behalf of the Tories and with no long term commitment to the UK was the outrage six months ago. Now we have David Cameron’s resignation list. And so it goes on. The other parties condemn but then go on to do the same.

Way down the honours list you find British Empire Medals. BEMs are given to individuals for dedication and hard work in their communities, typically for unpaid voluntary work, sometimes over decades. Not glamorous or high profile and certainly not profitable. Recently a 99 year old received a BEM for 50 years of service to her community. Another elderly recipient was an Auschwitz survivor who volunteers with the Holocaust Memorial Trust. Ordinary people giving their time altruistically and sometimes extraordinarily, for no financial reward.