Honours: Forfeiture

(asked on 28th October 2025) - View Source

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to help reduce the (a) number of steps required and (b) time taken to remove (i) honours and (ii) titles.


Answered by
Nick Thomas-Symonds Portrait
Nick Thomas-Symonds
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
This question was answered on 4th November 2025

Peerages, styles, titles and honours are granted by the Sovereign.

The Sovereign may change the entitlement to the titles and styles such as “Prince” and “Royal Highness” under the Royal Prerogative. An Act of Parliament is required to remove a peerage once conferred.

Honours can only be revoked by the Sovereign, typically following a recommendation by the Forfeiture Committee to the Prime Minister.

Reticulating Splines