EXCLUSIVE: One Tory insider said the revelation would help the public “see right through Labour’s gesture politics to deep hypocrisy right at their core”.
Sir Keir Starmer has elevated former MP Thangham Debbonaire to the Lords (Image: GETTY)
Thangam Debbonaire, the former Labour MP, has been skewered by Tory opponents after enthusiastically accepting a peerage – despite having savaged the Tories for using Britain’s honours system to “reward cronies”.
And Ms Debbonaire has also faced a significant backlash on social media, with numerous users sharing a clip recorded in 2022 in which she insisted Sir Keir Starmer would “never do what Boris Johnson has done”.
Downing Street announced a raft of new nominations to the House of Lords on Friday afternoon, included former shadow cabinet minister Thangam Debbonaire.
Others include Sir Keir’s former Chief of Staff Sue Gray, as well as former MP Luciana Berger, who resigned from Labour in 2019 over the antisemitism scandal before rejoining in 2023, will also sit on the Labour Lords benches.
Overall, 38 new appointments were announced, including the six from the Tories, Labour’s 30, and two from the Liberal Democrats.
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Posting on X, Ms Debbonaire, the former Shadow Leader of the House of Commons, said: “I’m honoured to be asked to join the House of Lords.
“I’m grateful to the Prime Minister for giving me this opportunity to serve the country and support the Labour government he leads to transform the UK.”
Her remarks were in marked contrast to those made during an appearance on ITV two years ago in which she said: “This has been rewarding cronies, and that’s just not on.
“And Sir Keir Starmer would never do that, he would never exploit the honours system to do what Boris Johnson has done.”
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Sue Gray has also been made a peer (Image: Getty)
Ms Debbonaire, defeated in Bristol Central by Green Party leader Carla Denyer in June, had frequently accused former PM Mr Johnson of exploiting the honours system in their favour, claiming this was typified by his resignation honours, with nominations handed to close allies and political supporters rather than individuals recognised for their service to the nation.
She had therefore argued that the system was being “degraded and discredited” by what she sought to characterise as favoritism, undermining public trust in its integrity.
One Tory source told Express.co.uk: “Once again, it’s one rule for Labour, and one for everyone else.
“But the public see right through their gesture politics, and instead see the deep hypocrisy right at their core.”
Former Tory Prime Minister Boris Johnson (Image: Getty)
Reacting on X, one poster observed of Ms Debbonaire’s remark: “That hasn’t aged well.”
Former Olympic swimming champion Sharron Davies, a member of the Conservative Party, shared a laughing emoticon, adding: “Again…Oh the hypocrisy.”
A Labour source told Express.co.uk: “The Tories stuffed the House of Lords, creating a serious imbalance in the chamber.
“This needs to be corrected to drive through the government’s plan for change and deliver on our mandate from the British people.
“We are committed to an overdue programme of reform and have already laid legislation to remove the right of hereditary peers to sit and vote in the Lords.”
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