'Empire' tag on honours is facing axe

The word "Empire" could be abolished from all British honours under new plans announced by the Government today.

Civil servants will also be stripped of their control over deciding who should get knighthoods, OBEs and other awards, Tony Blair told Parliament.

Other reforms include creating a new lapel badge to allow those with honours to show off their achievement.

The proposals emerged today when the Prime Minister used a written Commons statement to publish his long-awaited response to two reports calling for reform.

The Commons public administration committee had urged revolutionary change, including scrapping knighthoods, CBEs and MBEs and creating a new "Order of British Excellence" instead of the " Order of the British Empire".

Downing Street's command paper today said it would look "without prejudice" at removing the word "Empire" because of its connotations - the Government is aware "it feels anachronistic to some people".

The paper stresses ministers have decided not to abolish OBEs straight away. With a general election only weeks away, it may be that scrapping "Empire" immediately was too politically explosive.

But a Cabinet Office statement said: "It will consider the matter further, without prejudice as to whether there should be a change."

The Government also rejected MPs' calls to abolish knighthoods and damehoods, but wanted the honours system to be "more open, diverse and easier to understand".

One reform that will go ahead immediately is the removal of control of senior civil servants over the award of honours.

The Prime Minister has agreed that the selection committee should be chaired by someone from outside government and, in future, the majority of the people who make up the committee will not be civil servants.

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