Sangita Myska challenges awards consultant about Honours list nomination process
31 December 2022, 15:31 | Updated: 31 December 2022, 15:37
Sangita Myska challenges awards consultant for privatising Honours List nominations
This is the moment Sangita Myska called out Lesley Hussell from Awards Intelligence, a private company that says they are helping to “change the makeup” of the Honours list.
The New Year Honours List for 2023 was released this morning, recognising individuals from across the UK.
Lesley Hussell told Sangita Myska that companies like hers that assist people’s applications are helping the nomination system move away from the “male, pale and stale, old-fashioned image.”
But Sangita challenged Hussell, asking how she could claim that “anybody” could apply for an Honour when the company is surely set up to make Honours nominations more likely – or else they wouldn’t be able to charge for their services.
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Lesley Hussell evaded the question, reiterating that “anybody has a chance of doing it, anybody can download and fill out that form. We will help those who don’t feel confident that they can give the best case.”
Sangita pushed her to clarify how the nominations systems works when private companies are involved, saying that rather than the cabinet office acting as a “sieve” which filters applications, “your company is doing a first round of sieving on a private basis.”
Sangita asked what Awards Intelligence’s success rate was last year for ensuring applicants who they helped secured Honours nominations.
Lesley Hussell once again didn’t answer the question directly and continued to emphasise how much time her company puts into each application, saying “you won’t get an honour for just sitting on committees.”
