Arise Sir Neil? I don’t think so...

I'm not an admirer of the Royal Family (as I may have mentioned previously...), nor of most of the Honours system.

I personally find it deeply offensive when someone is given an Honour for making themselves wealthy and famous. Celebrities are made Knights of the Realm purely on the basis they are famous. What has a footballer or singer done to deserve such an honour? They have pursued their ambition and made a great deal of money (often abusing their status to get away with the type of behaviour considered unacceptable in the rest of society). They then expect recognition in the form of honours.

Why?

The nurse who works a sixty hour shift, caring for the sick and dying, week after week, is surely far more deserving of recognition than a pampered entertainer or overpaid idiot footballer?

In many ways the Honours system reflects the Royals. It elevates people for no real reason – enforcing an outdated class system – and does not reflect those who truly deserve to be recognised.

There is a committee whose job it is to look into the behaviour of holders of honours. They can recommend the removal of the honour if the holder's actions bring it into disrepute. Really???? What about the various peers (stand up Lord Archer) who have ended up in prison and retained their title? Surely this alone demonstrates the nonsense of an honour system. How can you be a Peer of the Realm and, therefore, a symbol of our nation, and also be a convicted criminal.

However...

This weekend I learnt of an Honour given to an everyday individual in recognition of their work for the community. I won't tell you his name as he doesn't want publicity. He is a quiet, private person who has spent over thirty years quietly working. He helps the homeless in his spare time and is generally the exact type of person who should be recognised and rewarded for his efforts. Ironically, he is also the kind of person who is least likely to tell anyone he has been awarded his honour.

We are all incredibly pleased for him. His family is immensely proud. He is probably more embarrassed at the fuss than anything else – although I'm sure he is also very proud and amazed.

This is exactly what the Honours system should be about – recognising ordinary (in terms of not famous, there's nothing ordinary about the type of person who works so hard for no reward) people who do far more for their community than the average person. People who quietly do it for their own reasons, without expectation of anything more than the knowledge they have helped.

If the Royals must give out these awards, they should consider creating a category for the rich and famous and another for the genuinely deserving. Then we would all know who truly has earned the Honour and who has bought it with fame.