HL Deb 23 January 1984 vol 447 cc130-1WA
Lord Jenkins of Putney

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they are aware that the boards of the eighteen top industrial companies in the United Kingdom have received only one peerage between them since 1979 whereas the eighteen top contributors to Tory Party funds have received five peerages and nine knighthoods and whether they will ask the Political Honours Scrutiny Committee to consider whether any action should be taken to reduce the incidence of these coincidences.

Viscount Whitelaw

Her Majesty's Government do not accept either the noble Lord's statistics, or the correlation which he implies. The Answer to the second part of the Question is, No. All proposals to recommend honours for political services are scrutinised by the Political Honours Scrutiny Committee in accordance with the functions laid upon it in the Order in Council of 31st May 1979.

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