Robbie Gibb, the ex-head of BBC Westminster, and former Daily Mail political editor James Slack were among the journalists to receive honours from Theresa May today.
The former Prime Minister has knighted Gibb (pictured), who served as her director of communications for two years after he left the BBC in July 2017, for political and public service.
At the time of his departure from the BBC, Gibb, whose brother is Conservative minister Nick Gibb, edited the Daily Politics and Sunday Politics shows and was executive editor of The Andrew Marr Show.
He spent 23 years at the BBC and was also previously deputy editor of Newsnight, a senior producer at On The Record and deputy head of the Political Research Unit.
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Slack, who was appointed May’s official spokesperson in February 2017, was made a Commander of the British Empire for public service in May’s resignation honours.
He joined the Downing Street team from his role as political editor of the Daily Mail.
While at the Mail, Slack’s achievements included working on the paper’s successful three-year campaign to stop Aspergers sufferer Gary McKinnon being extradited to the United States.
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His name was attached to the memorable Mail front page from 2016 which branded the judges who ruled Parliament would get the final say on triggering Article 50 and the UK’s exit from the European Union as “enemies of the people”.
May also made Kirsty Buchanan, a former Daily Express political editor, an Officer of the British Empire for political and public service.
Buchanan joined May’s press team in Number Ten in 2017, after working as a special adviser at the Ministry of Justice.
She is now director of communications at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
Another former Daily Mail journalist, Liz Sanderson, was given a peerage today after working as a special adviser to May.
Sanderson broke the news of May’s type one diabetes in a 2013 interview and was subsequently appointed the then new PM’s head of features in 2016.
Picture: BBC
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