'Bad smell' around honours awarded by Prime Ministers

A former standards watchdog today said a “bad smell” surrounds honours offered by prime ministers after it was reported that David Cameron wants peerages for ex-advisers.

Sir Alistair Graham, who chaired the Committee on Standards in Public Life, said only people with public service that “genuinely merits” an honour should receive one.

He spoke after it was reported that names on Mr Cameron’s farewell honours list were being blocked by Whitehall civil servants.

Sir Alistair said the way the honours list had been used by a string of prime ministers undermined the system in the public’s eyes. “There has always been a bad small about it. People think it’s the PM passing honours to their cronies rather than genuinely rewarding public servants.”

Asked how Mr Cameron’s list should be approached he said: “Civil servants must apply the same criteria they would apply for others. Do they genuinely meet the criteria of having given public service that genuinely merits a national honour?”

The Times reported that Ed Llewellyn, the ex-PM’s chief of staff, could be offered a place in the House of Lords.