Boris Johnson has once again nominated Paul Dacre for a peerage as part of a pared-back resignation honours list despite the Daily Mail chief having previously been rejected by the appointments watchdog, the Guardian has learned.
Sources with knowledge of the list have said that Johnson has put forward Dacre’s name for a second time. He had been knocked back last autumn after reported doubts raised by the House of Lords appointments commission.
If the commission raises the same objections again, it will create a major headache for the prime minister, who will have to choose whether to overrule its members or risk the wrath of one of Britain’s most powerful newspaper bosses.
Rishi Sunak is already under pressure to reject Johnson’s honours list, which is widely reported to include the name of Stanley Johnson, the former prime minister’s father.
Johnson has already had to slash the number of names on the list, sources told the Guardian, after he tried to include many of his allies from as far back as his time as London mayor. One person said Cabinet Office officials had told the former prime minister to cut his list down from about 100 to closer to 60.
Apart from Dacre, those listed for a peerage include the MP Nigel Adams, the former minister Nadine Dorries, the Scotland secretary Alister Jack, the Cop26 president Alok Sharma and the Tory donor David Ross, one source who has seen the list said.
One ally said: “The list is shorter than David Cameron’s or Theresa May’s so everyone can relax.” In 2019 Theresa May gave honours to 51 people while in 2016 David Cameron gave out 59 awards.
A spokesperson for Johnson said: “We cannot comment on honours or on individuals.” Downing Street also declined to comment, except to confirm that the list is now being reviewed by the Lords sppointments commission.
A spokesperson for Lord Bew, the chair of the commission, declined to comment on individual names, but added: “The commission vets those nominated by political parties for propriety using its published criteria and provides confidential advice to the prime minister.”
Johnson’s final honours list has been delayed so long that another prime minister has since resigned. Allies of the former prime minister say one reason for the delay has been the lengthy process of paring it back from its original length, which raised concerns that Johnson was being given preferential treatment over his predecessors.
One person said: “Boris wanted to say thank you to those close to him during the City Hall years, but in the end it made the list too unwieldy so he spent a long time cutting it back.”
But the individual names are believed to be causing Downing Street a bigger problem than the sheer number of them.
Sunak is already under pressure to reject any list that includes a knighthood for Stanley Johnson, given previous allegations about his behaviour.
In 2021, the Conservative MP Caroline Nokes accused Johnson of smacking her on the backside during a Conservative party conference in 2003, while the journalist Ailbhe Rea said he groped her at a different conference event. He has denied those accusations.
Journalist Tom Bower wrote in a biography of Boris Johnson that Stanley once broke his ex-wife Charlotte’s nose – allegations Stanley declined to comment on at the time.
The potential elevation of Dacre is likely to pose a dilemma for Sunak. As editor-in-chief of DMG Media and a former editor of the Daily Mail, Dacre is one of the most powerful media executives in the country, and the backing of his papers could help decide the next election in Sunak’s favour.
Dacre’s battle for a peerage has coincided however with legal challenges from a group of prominent individuals who allege the Mail newspapers engaged in illegal reporting tactics – including during Dacre’s time as editor.
Lawyers acting for the group – which includes Prince Harry, Elton John and Doreen Lawrence – allege they were “victims of abhorrent criminal activity and gross breaches of privacy” by the Mail. DMG Media strenuously denies all the allegations and Dacre has been approached for comment.
It is not the first time Johnson has tried to arrange a public position for Dacre. He attempted to put the former Daily Mail editor in charge of media regulator Ofcom, only for the appointment to be blocked in a highly unusual move.
Additional reporting by Jim Waterson
