Veteran Conservative politician Michael Gove is reportedly set to receive a peerage in Rishi Sunak’s resignation honours list.
Mr Gove, who stepped down as an MP at the last general election, is among a small group of former ministers and allies of the last prime minister who are believed to be in line for honours.
The list could include seven or eight names, in line with those issued by Mr Sunak’s predecessors Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, The Guardian reported, adding it could be published as soon as Friday.
Others reported to be on the list include former Scottish secretary Alister Jack, former chief whip Simon Hart, and ex-transport secretary Mark Harper – all longstanding supporters of Sunak.
Mr Gove, who held multiple cabinet posts over his political career, including education, environment, and housing secretary, never held one of the UK’s three great offices of state but was widely seen as an influential figure in successive Conservative governments. He also ran for the party leadership in 2016.
Mr Sunak previously awarded honours to several close aides when parliament was dissolved, including a peerage for his former chief of staff Liam Booth-Smith and a knighthood for deputy prime minister Oliver Dowden.
Rumours of Mr Gove’s impending peerage were first reported by the Sunday Times in January and reportedly confirmed by multiple sources to the Financial Times on Thursday. The Cabinet Office has declined to comment.
