Hugh Muir’s questioning of the bizarre honours system from an ethnic minority standpoint is long overdue (An honours system rooted in empire is not fit for purpose, 29 July). And his “conscientious objector” solution to the problem of offensive titles, such as Order of the (now non-existent) British Empire (OBE), is to be welcomed. As one among many who has had to agonise, under a vow of secrecy, between respecting the wishes of anonymous colleagues putting forward the nomination and maintaining solidarity with fellow citizens, whose ancestors suffered under the yoke of the British empire, rejecting the honour is no mean feat. But issues of concern go further than this.
Such class-based structures as the monarchical honours system, combining achievement with deference, are at the heart of the British establishment’s resistance to socioeconomic change and to the principles of democratic accountability. New Labour when in office had the chance to reform the system but in many respects, through the profligate use of life peerages, helped re-enforce it.
Enabling nominees to accept the honour, free of the title, would be a step in the right direction. But it would be better to cancel the patronage of empire altogether in favour of “on behalf of the British people”.
John Bynner
London
• It’s not just the giving of honours through a system based on a “long-passed empire” that is offensive. The awards differentiate by social rank, from worker (BEM) to tradesman (MBE), and professional (OBE) to celebrity (CBE) and beyond (KBE). Add to that the tawdry corruption of awards to politicians, which in general devalue the same awards given to distinguished achievers in specialist fields, and it’s not surprising that the whole system (apart from the Order of Merit) is no longer fit for purpose.
Tim Burnett
Kirkby Lonsdale, Cumbria
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