Brexiteers fume as Nigel Farage misses out on Honours list

Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage during a press conference at the Emmanuel Centre in London, while on the General Election campaign trail. - Credit: PA

Nigel Farage should have been included on the 2021 New Year Honours list, enraged Brexiteers have said.

Right-wing commentator Isabel Oakeshott said Farage “did more than anyone else on the planet to get us out of the EU”.

Oakeshott said Farage’s exclusion from the Honour’s list was “a nonsense” which showed the honours system was “corrupt”.

Patrick O’Flynn, Brexit spokesman for the Eurosceptic Social Democratic Party, agreed.

He said the decision was “unbelievably petty from the Westminster establishment”.

In December last year, author Christopher Snowdon claimed Farage would receive a knighthood that year, citing “rumours”.

The 2021 Honours List saw a total of 1,123 candidates selected at BEM, MBE, and OBE level, of which Farage was not one.

The majority of these were those who had “undertaken outstanding work in their communities either in a voluntary or paid capacity,” the Cabinet Office said.

This comes after Johnson came under fire at the end of last year for giving disgraced Tory Party treasurer Peter Cruddas a peerage.

The prime minister overruled the advice of the peerage watchdog to appoint Cruddas, saying he had become “on of this country’s most successful business figures” whose experience would be a “hugely valuable contribution” to the House of Lords.

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Cruddas stepped down from his role as party co-treasurer in March 2012 after being accused of offering access to then prime minister David Cameron and chancellor George Osborne in exchange for cash donations. He has denied any wrongdoing.

Johnson said of the 2021 New Year Honours list: “In a year when so many have made sacrifices to protect our NHS and save people’s lives, the outstanding efforts of those receiving honours today are a welcome reminder of the strength of human spirit, and of what can be achieved through courage and compassion

“The 2021 New Year Honours offer us an opportunity to salute their dedication and recognise many who have gone above and beyond in their contribution to our country.

“As we begin a new year and continue to come together to fight this virus, may their service and stories be an inspiration to us all.”