There has been praise for King Charles for stripping a leading UK politician of his knighthood.
The leader of the Oxfordshire Conservatives, Liam Walker, has commended His Majesty for protecting the “integrity and value of the honours system” after Jeffrey Donaldson had his knighthood removed.
Mr Walker said: “Honours are awarded to recognise outstanding service and achievement, and anyone convicted of serious criminal offences has forfeited the privilege of holding them.
“Stripping those honours helps protect the integrity and value of the honours system.”
Mr Donaldson was the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party between 2021 and 2024 and has appeared at the Oxford Union, participating in a well-publicised debate in 2004.
He argued in favour of the motion: “This House would not talk to Sinn Fein”.
He was an MP for Lagan Valley from 1997 to 2024 and also a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly from 2003 to 2010.
Cllr Liam Walker (Image: Supplied)
However, in June he was convicted of historical child sex abuse offences at Newry Crown Court.
As such his name was removed from the Privy Council, the body of senior advisers to the King, and a notice was published in the Gazette that the King “directed the cancellation and annulment” of the knighthood conferred upon Donaldson in 2016.
He is currently being held at Maghaberry Prison awaiting sentencing, having been convicted of 18 sex offences, including one count of rape, relating to the abuse of two women when they were children between 1985 and 2008.
His solicitor John McBurney confirmed that papers have been lodged for an appeal.
This comes after King Charles stripped others of their honours earlier this year and last year.
Jeffrey Donaldson (Image: Brian Lawless/PA Wire)
One such person was award-winning UK composer Jan Latham‑Koenig who had his OBE taken away in 2025.
The London-born composer built an international career with posts at major opera houses and orchestras, and was known for his work with ensembles including the London Philharmonic and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
Over the years, he has collected a string of honours, among them the Gulbenkian Fellowship and Russia’s Golden Mask award in 2014 for a production of Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde.
He was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2020 Birthday Honours for services to music and UK/Russia cultural relations.
He also appeared regularly in Oxford, including conducting the Oxford University Orchestra in an “Evening of Wagner” at the Sheldonian Theatre in Michaelmas 2019, and returning for other university‑linked concerts in the city.
In 2024, he admitted a series of child sex offences after sending sexual messages and an explicit image to an undercover police officer posing online as a 14‑year‑old boy, and was given a suspended prison sentence at Southwark Crown Court.
On August 1, 2025, an official notice in The London Gazette confirmed the King had directed his OBE “shall be cancelled and annulled” and that his name be erased from the order’s register, formally removing the honour.
