Sir Keir Starmer is being sued by a Tory peer after claiming the stripping of his CBE over social media posts constitutes a threat to free speech.
Lord Ranger, 78, was given the award in 2016 for his services to business and community cohesion.
However, the multi-millionaire businessman was stripped of the title following a series of tweets which were found to have breached the House of Lords’ Code of Conduct and criticism of Sikh separatists.
He claims to be the victim of “cancel culture”, arguing in his action against the Prime Minister the revocation of his CBE was “disproportionate”.
Mark Lewis, Lord Ranger’s solicitor, told The Telegraph: “It would not be appropriate to comment on the facts of the case whilst it is ongoing, but it is interesting to see what, if any, legal constraints there are to Governments adopting cancel culture over freedom of speech.”
A notice in the London Gazette in December 2024, said “the King has directed that… [the CBE] shall be cancelled and annulled and that his name shall be erased from the Register of the said Order”.
Although he still retains his MBE, the loss of his CBE is thought to have left Lord Ranger deeply embarrassed and distressed.
The decision was made by the Forfeiture Committee following two incidents involving Lord Ranger’s social media activity.
Lord Ranger is thought to be deeply embarrassed and distressed after being stripped of his CBE
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The first involved a House of Lords investigation into claims he harassed and bullied Indian journalist Poonam Joshi.
Ms Joshi told an inquiry Lord Ranger described her on social media as a “presstitute” - a slur used against Indian critics of the ruling BJP Government - following an event at the House of Lords last year.
He also falsely claimed she had reported her BBC presenter husband to police for domestic abuse.
The House of Lords watchdog found Lord Ranger had abused his position to humiliate the woman.
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The reason Sir Keir Starmer is the target of the legal action is because the Forfeiture Committee is overseen by the Prime Minister’s Cabinet Office
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He issued a public apology to Ms Joshi and promised to undertake social media training in the wake of the inquiry.
In addition to the case against Ms Joshi, Lord Ranger also apologised for online posts in which he criticised Sikh separatists and made belittling comments about Pakistanis.
It is thought the Forfeiture Committee cancelled Lord Ranger’s CBE for bringing the honours system into disrepute.
However, on its website, the committee says “personal disputes are not likely to be a reason to forfeit an honour”.
The reason Sir Keir Starmer is the target of the legal action is because the Forfeiture Committee is overseen by the Prime Minister’s Cabinet Office.
Leader of the Free Speech Union Toby Young said he was alarmed Lord Ranger had been stripped of his honours over controversial social media comments.
Lord Young said: “This shadowy committee, deep in the recesses of Whitehall, has become an enforcer of establishment orthodoxy, ruthlessly stripping people of their honours for expressing perfectly lawful views that it regards as beyond the pale.
“The reason this has such a chilling effect on free speech is that being denuded of an honour is far, far worse than not being given one in the first place. It’s deeply humiliating, with your dishonour being broadcast in the gazette.
“If people knew that receiving an OBE or a CBE was accompanied by a muzzle, with the risk that if you stray outside the Overton window [the political mainstream] you could lose it, I doubt many people would accept them in the first place.”
GB News has approached Lord Ranger for comment.
The Cabinet Office declined to comment on details of the case.