CONSERVATIVE peer and donor Lord Rami Ranger has been stripped of his Commander of the British Empire (CBE) honour following a decision by the Forfeiture Committee.
The committee determined that he had brought the honours system into disrepute.
The decision followed a report by the Lords standards watchdog, which found that Lord Ranger had bullied and harassed journalist Poonam Joshi on social media. The committee also considered posts he made about the Sikh community and comments in the media about Pakistanis, the BBC reported.
A notice in the London Gazette stated that the King had directed Lord Ranger’s honour be “cancelled and annulled.” He was awarded the CBE in 2016 for services to business and community cohesion and was made a peer in 2019 under Theresa May’s resignation honours.
Lord Ranger called the decision "unjust" and vowed to explore "various legal avenues" to challenge it. A spokesperson for the peer said he had not committed any crime and argued that the honours system should protect free speech and thought.
The spokesperson added that Lord Ranger had apologised and undertaken rehabilitative work regarding the complaints made against him. They claimed the decision would "encourage spurious complaints" and described the process as "shameful."
Lord Ranger was suspended from the Conservative parliamentary party last year following the Lords standards report but was reinstated in November. He has donated approximately £1.5 million to the Conservative Party since 2009.
The Forfeiture Committee advises on honour removals for reasons such as criminal offences, regulatory censure, or behaviour deemed to discredit the honours system.
