Lewis Hamilton was made a knight in the New Year Honours list last night – despite living in the tax haven of Monaco.
The seven-time Formula 1 champion, 35, was honoured alongside stars, including actress Sheila Hancock who becomes a dame at the age of 87, and NHS workers who have battled the pandemic.
Veteran footballers Jimmy Greaves and Ron Flowers were made MBEs along with singer Craig David while Line Of Duty and Bodyguard writer Jed Mercurio was given an OBE.
Hamilton, 35, who is worth more than £250million, quit the UK in 2007 to live in the tax havens of Switzerland and Monaco.
Lewis Hamilton was made a knight in the New Year Honours list last night – despite living in the tax haven of Monaco. He is pictured with Naomi Campbell and ex-girlfriend, singer Nicole Scherzinger
The seven-time Formula 1 champion, 35, is worth more than £250million, and quit the UK in 2007 to live in the tax havens of Switzerland and Monaco. Hamilton insists he does pay some tax in the UK. He is seen above, aged 14, with Prince Charles
But he insists he does pay some tax in the UK. He has stressed: ‘I am contributing to the country and, not only that, I help to keep a team of more than 1,000 people employed.’
Boris Johnson had come under sustained pressure to include Hamilton in the list after a year in which he equalled German ace Michael Schumacher’s record with seven F1 titles and became a vocal activist for the Black Lives Matter movement. Hamilton was raised in a council house in Stevenage, Hertfordshire.
It is understood the sport honours committee was unable to recommend him through the usual channels because his Monaco residency meant that Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs could not vet his tax affairs adequately.
Hamilton has stressed: ‘I am contributing to the country and, not only that, I help to keep a team of more than 1,000 people employed’
Boris Johnson had come under sustained pressure to include Hamilton in the list after a year in which he equalled German ace Michael Schumacher’s record with seven F1 titles and became a vocal activist for the Black Lives Matter movement. Hamilton was raised in a council house in Stevenage, Hertfordshire
As the Mail has revealed, Mr Johnson was so keen to see Hamilton knighted that he was included on the Foreign Office’s ‘Overseas’ list – the first time a British sporting figure had been accommodated in this way.
Donna Fraser, of UK Athletics, who sits on the committee which decides sporting honours, said he was a ‘phenomenal’ sportsman who deserved the knighthood but conceded the honours system did have to be protected from ‘disrepute’.
But Tory MP Andrew Percy questioned why an F1 driver should receive a knighthood on Britain’s diplomatic list. He added: ‘I would have thought their sponsorship deal would be enough for them.’
Meanwhile, Miss Hancock joked she felt ‘miscast’ for her damehood, adding: ‘I feel I may be lowering the tone.’
Dame Sheila, who has worked on stage and screen since the 1960s and was married to Inspector Morse star John Thaw until his death in 2002, said she felt the honour brought ‘an immense sense of duty’.
Actress Sheila Hancock has become a dame at the age of 87. Dame Sheila, who has worked on stage and screen since the 1960s and was married to Inspector Morse star John Thaw until his death in 2002, said she felt the honour brought ‘an immense sense of duty’
EastEnders actress Nina Wadia (left) received an OBE and Coronation Street veteran Sally Dynevor (right), 57, who has played Sally Webster since 1986, becomes an MBE
Actress Lesley Manville, 64, who will play Princess Margaret in the final two seasons of Netflix hit The Crown, was made a CBE
She said: ‘I feel I’ve got to prove something and work even harder, particularly in my charity area. I’ve got to earn it, as it were, now quickly before I die.’
Actress Lesley Manville, 64, who will play Princess Margaret in the final two seasons of Netflix hit The Crown, was made a CBE.
EastEnders actress Nina Wadia received an OBE and Coronation Street veteran Sally Dynevor, 57, who has played Sally Webster since 1986, becomes an MBE.
Actor Toby Jones, who has played Alfred Hitchcock and Dobby the house-elf in Harry Potter, received an OBE.
Oscar-winning cinematographer Roger Deakins, who worked on films including Blade Runner, Shawshank Redemption and Skyfall, was knighted.
Broadcaster Eric Robson, 73, who headed Radio 4’s Gardeners’ Question Time for almost three decades, was given an OBE.
Football heroes Greaves, 80, and Flowers, 86, were made MBEs after a long-running campaign to ensure every surviving member of England’s 1966 World Cup-winning squad gets an honour.
Actor Toby Jones (left), who has played Alfred Hitchcock and Dobby the house-elf in Harry Potter, received an OBE – while singer Craig David (right) was made an MBE
Oscar-winning cinematographer Roger Deakins, who worked on films including Blade Runner, Shawshank Redemption and Skyfall, was knighted
The Prime Minister said he hoped the New Year Honours would inspire the nation. Mr Johnson said: ‘In a year when so many have made sacrifices to protect our NHS and save people’s lives, the outstanding efforts of those receiving honours today are a welcome reminder of the strength of human spirit and of what can be achieved through courage and compassion.
‘The 2021 New Year Honours offer us an opportunity to salute their dedication and recognise many who have gone above and beyond in their contribution to our country.
‘As we begin a new year and continue to come together to fight this virus, may their service and stories be an inspiration to us all.’
Football heroes Jimmy Greaves, 80, and Ron Flowers (right), 86, were made MBEs after a long-running campaign to ensure every surviving member of England’s 1966 World Cup-winning squad gets an honour
Government officials said it was ‘profoundly right’ that the honours should celebrate frontline workers who had helped to save countless lives from the virus.
They stressed that future honours lists would continue to celebrate the work of those fighting the pandemic, including the teams behind recent vaccine breakthroughs.
This year there have been calls for the word ’empire’ to be dropped from honours in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests and ongoing controversy over Britain’s colonial past.
However, officials said there were no plans to remove it. They stressed that this year’s list was the most diverse in its history, with 14 per cent of all awards going to people from black and ethnic minority communities.
Broadcaster Eric Robson, 73, who headed Radio 4’s Gardeners’ Question Time for almost three decades, was given an OBE