Tory donors, partners and cronies handed New Year Honours List awards
Tory donors and fat cat bosses have been showered with top accolades while charity heroes Kevin Sinfield and Rob Burrow missed out on knighthoods in today's New Year Honours List.
Downing Street also slipped out Liz Truss's long-awaited resignation honours at the same time. The shameless ex-PM bestowed honours on 11 cronies - one for every four-and-a-half days she was in Downing Street.
A long list of tycoons were named as Sirs and Dames in the New Year Honour's List, including Addison Lee taxi mogul John Griffin, who has donated over £4million to the Conservatives. Brexit-backing Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin, who has given money to the Tories in the past, also got a knighthood. Other wealthy supporters were also recognised in the list, which is supposed to recognise selflessness and heroism.
The Mirror has identified 10 donors or partners of donors who have contributed a massive £7.8million to Conservative coffers between them.
These include philanthropist Cristina Taylor, wife of oil tycoon Ian Taylor, was also made a Dame. Mr Taylor, who has given a hefty £2.8million to the Conservatives, previously withdrew his name for a knighthood amid a cronyism row over David Cameron's resignation honours.
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Meanwhile officials ignored pleas to fast-track former Rugby League icons Sinfield and Burrow, who missed out on the knighthoods which many hoped they would receive. The pair have raised more than £9million to help fight motor neurone disease (MND) - a condition that 41-year-old Burrow suffers from.
The Mirror called for the pair to be made Sirs in June after Sinfield famously pushed his friend over 26 miles in his wheelchair during the Leeds Marathon. Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper was among those calling for them to be knighted this year, particularly with Burrow battling MND.
John Griffin, founder of London cab company Addison Lee has been knighted
Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin was also made a Sir (PA)Instead the former Leeds Rhinos stars were given CBEs despite the mounting pressure. In the summer Ms Cooper wrote to the Honours and Appointments Secretariat urging officials to set aside traditional timescales between honours. Her letter said: "I hope you will agree that their incredible achievements are worthy of the highest possible honour.”
Downing Street also snuck out Ms Truss's resignation honours list in a move that will spark fury and overshadow the good work of hundreds of unsung heroes. The former PM, who lasted just 49 days in No10, handed out three peerages - including one to ex-Vote Leave chairman Jon Moynihan, whose £588,000 of Tory donations includes over £53,000 to her office last year.
Controversial strategist Matthew Elliott, who was chief executive of Vote Leave, also got a peerage, along with Ms Truss's deputy chief of staff, Ruth Porter. The three can now sit in the House of Lords for life.
Four MP allies were rewarded by Ms Truss. Jacqueline Doyle-Price was awarded a Damehood, while Alec Shelbrooke was knighted. Robert Butler and Suzanne Webb both picked up OBEs after Ms Truss resisted calls not to do a resignation honours list.
Lib Dem deputy leader Daisy Cooper said: "This shameless move to reward Liz Truss's car crash cronies is matched only by Sunak’s weakness in failing to block it. Truss handing out gongs after blowing a hole in the public finances and leaving families reeling from spiraling mortgage costs calls this whole honours system into disrepute."
And Labour's Jonathan Ashworth said: "This list is proof positive of Rishi Sunak's weakness and a slap in the face to working people who are paying the price of the Tories crashing the economy. Honours should be for those committed to public service, not rewards for Tory failure. Rather than apologise for crashing the economy and driving up mortgages rates, costing families thousands, Rishi Sunak has nodded through these tarnished gongs because he is too weak to lead a Tory party completely out of touch with working people."
Cristina Taylor, wife of oil tycoon Tory donor Ian Taylor, was made a DameIt comes on a day of honours controversy, with the New Year Honours list knighthood also featuring businessman Gerald Ronson, who was jailed for his role in a share-trading fraud in 1990. Mr Ronson served six months of a one year sentence for conspiracy, two charges of false accounting, and theft.
He consistently denied being part of the Guinness share-trading fraud in the 1980s - which manipulated the stock market to raise the firm's value - but his final appeal was rejected in 2002. He was knighted for his charity work, having given away more than £100million over the years.
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Other high-profile Tory donors who picked up honours included finance boss Andrew Bell, who was awarded a CBE. He has given the party £705,000 according to public records, most recently a £250,000 donation in July last year. And JP Morgan boss Naguib Kheraj - also given a CBE - has handed over £134,500 in the past.
On top of this aviation industry chief Duncan Barber - who was awarded an OBE - donated £8,500 to the Conservatives between 2016 and 2018. The same honour was given to Julian Watson, who donated £5,075 to the party days after the 2019 general election.
OBE recipient Joanna Swash gave £10,000 to the Conservatives earlier this year. And philanthropist Mildred Palley, who was awarded an OBE for services to the arts and education, is married to Simon Palley - who gave £15,000 to the Tories in 2015.
Wetherspoons boss Mr Martin gave the Tories £50,000 in 2019, although his most recent political donation was to Reform UK two years ago. The businessman, who was knighted for services to hospitality and culture, said: "I'd like to think that (the knighthood) is not for my rarely disclosed political views - I hope it is for what it says on the tin."
Former Home Secretary and Chancellor Sajid Javid was knighted in today's list. He was among the politicians to pick up gongs, with Labour stalwart Siobhain McDonagh becoming a Dame. The list also saw Dame Margaret Beckett's Damehood upgraded.
Labour's Yvonne Fovargue received a CBE, while Tory backbencher Mark Garnier - who was cleared by a Cabinet Office probe after asking his secretary to buy sex toys in Soho - was made an OBE.
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