Political aides who worked with Boris Johnson during the partygate scandal are among those who have been nominated for honours in his resignation list.
The former prime minister’s highly anticipated resignation honours list has been published and includes Martin Reynolds, his former principal private secretary, who later earned the nickname “party Marty” for his role in a “bring your own booze” party during the pandemic.
Mr Reynolds rose to prominence at the heart of the parties scandal when he sent an email on 20 May 2020 inviting people for “socially distanced drinks” in the Number 10 garden during the first national lockdown.
The honours list also includes Conor Burns, the Bournemouth West MP and a former minister, who is a staunch ally of Mr Johnson.
However, while there are some controversial appointments, others have been removed from the list as previously reported, including former culture secretary Nadine Dorries and former Cop26 president Sir Alok Sharma.
The Times reported that Mr Johnson’s father, Stanley Johnson, has also been removed from the list after No 10 raised objections.
There had been reports that Ms Dorries and Sir Alok were in line to receive peerages, but reports overnight suggest they have been dropped from the list to avoid the prospect of two potentially damaging by-elections.
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However, Ms Dorries later announced that she was standing down as the MP for Mid Bedfordshire “with immediate effect” – triggering a by-election in her constituency which Rishi Sunak had sought to avoid.
“It has been an honour to serve as the MP for such a wonderful constituency but it is now time for someone younger to take the reins,” she tweeted.
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Image: Nadine Dorries, Britain's Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport arrives for a cabinet meeting in London, Monday, Jan. 24, 2022. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
Mr Johnson announced he would be leaving Downing Street almost 10 months ago following the collapse of his government.
There have been numerous reports since Mr Johnson left office that his list was initially too long, with opposition parties also accusing him of appointing allies to the House of Lords and abusing the system.
The prime minister’s resignation honours are granted by an outgoing prime minister according to tradition.
A prime minister can request the reigning monarch to grant peerages, knighthoods, damehoods or other awards in the British honours system to any number of people.
In the case of peerages, the House of Lords Appointments Commission vets the list.
Often, but not always, Downing Street staff, political aides and MPs are rewarded through the system.
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