• The British honours system is one of the oldest in the world and at first glance can appear relatively complicated to navigate. The honours system is used to reward people for merit, service or bravery. An honour, decoration or medal is a public way of illustrating that the recipient has done something worthy of recognition.
  

The following is a list of the awards:

• Companion of Honour: A pre-eminent and sustained contribution in the arts, science, medicine, or government.
• Knight/Dame: A pre-eminent contribution in any field, usually, but not exclusively at national level, or in a capacity which will be recognised by peer groups as inspirational and significant nationally, and which demonstrates sustained commitment.
• CBE: A prominent national role of a lesser degree, or a conspicuous leading role in regional affairs or making a highly distinguished, innovative contribution in his or her area of activity.
• OBE: A distinguished regional or country-wide role in any field, including notable practitioners known nationally.
• MBE: Service in and to the community of a responsible kind which is outstanding in its field; or very local 'hands-on' service which stands out as an example to others. In both cases awards illuminate areas of dedicated service which merit public recognition.

There are two routes by which people enter the system:

• Nomination by an individual or a public/private sector organisation familiar with the work of the candidate.
• Submission by a government department that has identified a candidate doing good work within its sphere of interest. (Candidates may be identified as a result of nominations sent to that department from public or private sources.)

Each case may go through several stages before reaching the Ceremonial Secretariat of the Cabinet Office.

As a general rule, I do not normally nominate people for honours myself but I do, in appropriate circumstances, support the nomination of a constituent for an honour where there is considerable community support for the nomination of a particular individual and that individual has a clear record of considerable community and public service.

For information on the nomination process and how you can nominate an individual that you feel is worthy of the aforementioned honours, check out the Cabinet Office Website.