Gove became a household name during his controversial tenure as education secretary from 2010 to 2014, a period marked by significant reforms to the British school system. He subsequently held positions as justice secretary, environment secretary and housing secretary.
As a prominent Brexit supporter, Gove's political journey included a famous falling out with Boris Johnson when he withdrew support from Johnson's leadership bid in 2016, creating one of the more dramatic moments in recent Conservative party history.
Sunak's honors list appears to reward several key allies from his administration, which ran from October 2022 until the election defeat in July 2024.
James Cleverly, who served as both foreign secretary and home secretary during Sunak's premiership, is also expected to receive a knighthood. Cleverly had been considered a potential successor to Sunak as Tory leader following the 2024 election loss but was ultimately defeated by Kemi Badenoch in the leadership contest.
Andrew Mitchell, the former international development secretary and a passionate advocate for overseas aid spending, particularly in Africa, is also set to be knighted. Mitchell recently took on an unpaid advisory role with the African Development Bank Group, continuing his focus on international development issues.
Theresa Villiers, former Northern Ireland secretary and prominent Leave campaigner, expected to be appointed a dame.
Reports indicate that Sunak will award peerages to seven people in total. Besides Gove, these include former government figures such as Simon Hart (who recently published a revealing memoir about the breakdown of Tory discipline), Sir Alister Jack (the former Scotland secretary), and Mark Harper (who served as transport secretary). Stephen Massey, who previously held the position of chief executive of the Conservative Party, is also expected to receive recognition.
This new honors round follows a previous dissolution list where Sunak elevated several retiring MPs to the House of Lords, including former prime minister Theresa May (now Baroness May) and other notable figures such as Sir Oliver Dowden, the former deputy prime minister, and Sir Ben Wallace, who served as defense secretary.
The tradition of outgoing prime ministers giving honors to allies, donors and staff continues to attract criticism. Meanwhile, Labor leader Sir Keir Stammer has been criticized for his own appointments.
Reports suggest he has named more life peers to Labor benches in his first 200 days than almost any leader in the past three decades. This appears contradictory as Stammer is also pushing for reform of the House of Lords and wants to end the system of hereditary peers.
Sunak's complete honors list is expected to be published once it receives formal approval from Buckingham Palace.
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