Indian-origin former transport director awarded peerage in Boris Johnson’s resignation lists

It was published hours before the former Conservative party leader stepped down as an MP late on Friday.Ranger and former Downing Street Chief of Staff Dan Rosenfield are among those who will enter the lower house of the UKs Parliament.Some of Johnsons closest allies - including former Home Secretary Priti Patel and Jacob Rees-Mogg - have been honoured with peerages and other awards in the list.

Kulveer Singh Ranger, the former Indian-origin director of transport, has been awarded with a peerage as former UK prime minister Boris Johnson’s long-awaited honours and peerages lists were published hours before he stepped down as an MP.

Johnson's long-awaited honours list, approved nine months after he resigned as prime minister, included 38 honours and seven peerages. It was published hours before the former Conservative party leader stepped down as an MP late on Friday.

Ranger and former Downing Street Chief of Staff Dan Rosenfield are among those who will enter the lower house of the UK's Parliament.

Some of Johnson's closest allies - including former Home Secretary Priti Patel and Jacob Rees-Mogg - have been honoured with peerages and other awards in the list. Patel was made a dame, while former Secretaries of State Simon Clarke and Rees-Mogg were knighted.

Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen and London Assembly member Shaun Bailey are among the seven new peers.

No serving MPs were given peerages, avoiding by-elections for the Tories, but Johnson's resignation will trigger immediate by-polls in his Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituencies.

The resignation honours list is a tradition that allows outgoing prime ministers to nominate people for honours.

Charlotte Owen, a former adviser to Johnson, will become one of the youngest peers, as will fellow advisers Ben Gascoigne and Ross Kempsell.

Honours were given to some of Johnson's closest advisers during his premiership. Also among recipients were aides who served with Johnson during the scandal over lockdown parties in Downing Street during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Johnson's former principal private secretary, Martin Reynolds, was awarded the Order of Bath.

In May 2020, Reynolds sent an invite to a ''bring your own booze'' party to Downing Street staff when the nation was under lockdown.

The first name on the list was of Tory MP and long-standing Brexit backer Bill Cash, who has become a Companion of Honour.

Membership is a special award granted to those ''who have made a major contribution to the arts, science, medicine, or government'', and it is only held by up to 65 people at any one time. Johnson abruptly resigned as a lawmaker on Friday, claiming he was the “victim of a witch-hunt”, after being told by a parliamentary committee that he will be sanctioned for misleading Parliament over lockdown-breaking parties at Downing Street during his premiership.

His decision to resign as a Member of Parliament came as he received a confidential letter from the MP-led Privileges Committee over the crucial matter.

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