Reports that the British government did not follow protocol on five occasions over the last 30 years when awarding honours to Irish citizen has revived debate about whether Ireland should have a similar system.
The UK system is not the best point of departure. Its connection to the British monarch and Britain’s imperial past is enough to put most Irish people off the idea. The debasement of the British system by prime ministers recommending knighthoods for individuals who have done them political and other favours – of which the controversy over Boris Johnson’s resignation honours list is just one example – does little to help the cause.
There is also the fundamental problem of the British honours system being grounded in the concept of ennoblement and the notion that some citizens are superior to others. This is anathema to a Republic. Some say it is possible to have an honours system that is compatible with republican values. The French have the légion d’honneur and the United States has an elaborate system of presidential medals. Both systems allow citizens and non-citizens to be recognised for their service to the state, but neither are free of allegations of cronyism.
A bill to create an Irish presidential honour system along these lines – to be known as Gradam an Uachtaráin – has come before the Seanad. It is based on a bill put forward by the late senator Fergal Quinn in 2015 and sponsored by a group of independent senators. The Government says it does not oppose the bill but that this should not imply its acceptance of it either. It has flagged the issue of who would decide who gets an award.
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The indifference of the Government to the idea of an honours system probably mirrors that of the wider public – and the maxim leave well enough alone seems apposite. The awarding of honours, even in a well-designed system, is always going to have a strong element of arbitrariness to it. It will always privilege those with connections or those who achieve prominence over those who have neither of those things. A republic of equals should have no interest in such a system.