British Indian peer can now proceed with judicial review of decision that revoked his honour in 2024
British Indian Conservative peer Lord Rami Ranger has won the right to seek a judicial review of the decision to revoke his Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), opening an unprecedented legal challenge over the removal of a British honour.
The High Court ruled that the decision to revoke an honour can, in principle, be examined through judicial review. Justice Nathalie Lieven said the removal of an honour can have significant consequences for an individual’s reputation and that judicial review provides an important safeguard against errors or misuse of official authority.
The ruling follows legal proceedings brought by Lord Ranger against the UK Government. His CBE, which had been awarded by the late Queen Elizabeth II for services to business and community cohesion, was formally annulled on October 15, 2024.
The decision followed a recommendation by the Honours Forfeiture Committee, which had considered allegations concerning Lord Ranger’s conduct. The committee notified him in January 2024 that it was considering whether his conduct had brought the honours system into disrepute and invited him to make representations. It later recommended that the honour be revoked.
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The Government had argued that the revocation of an honour was an exercise of prerogative power and therefore not a matter for the courts
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Justice Lieven rejected that argument at this preliminary stage, noting that the honours forfeiture process includes procedures that can be examined by the courts
Lord Ranger’s legal team is expected to argue that the decision was disproportionate, affected his freedom of expression and failed to follow proper procedures.
The latest ruling does not restore his CBE. Instead, it allows the substantive judicial review challenge to proceed. The case could therefore become an important test of the extent to which decisions concerning British honours are subject to judicial scrutiny.
