The Overseas and International Birthday 2022 Honours List published today recognises 122 extraordinary people in a wide range of fields.

• the Queen’s Birthday Honours recognise 122 people for exceptional service to the UK overseas or internationally
• awards recognise extraordinary people across a range of fields
• Professors David MacMillan and Linda Colley are among those recognised for exceptional contributions to science and history respectively

The Overseas and International Birthday 2022 Honours List published today recognises 122 extraordinary people in a wide range of fields. These include contributions made across business, charity, development, the environment, education, foreign policy, health, science and security.

Among those receiving awards this year is the scientist Professor David MacMillan, who receives a Knighthood for his outstanding contribution to chemistry. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Chemistry last year for his ground-breaking work on the development of catalysts.

Professor Linda Colley, the widely respected international academic and historian, is awarded a DBE [Dame Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire] for her exceptional contribution to British constitutional history.

Professor David Warrell’s research of deadly tropical diseases, such as snakebite, rabies and severe malaria, have saved the lives of thousands of people around the world. The widely respected researcher is awarded a KCMG [Knight Commander of the Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George] for his exceptional contribution to tropical medicine.

This year’s awards recognise a number of extraordinary achievements made by British nationals who have helped lead the global fight against climate change, including by supporting the successful UK Presidency of COP26. These include an OBE [Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire] awarded to Helen Clarkson, Chief Executive Officer of Climate Group, for her work on global initiatives to improve energy efficiency and increase the adoption of electric vehicles.

Sir Philip Barton, Permanent Under-Secretary at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and Head of the Diplomatic Service, said:

I congratulate everyone receiving an honour and thank them for their hard work and years of service. The UK’s impact around the world depends on exceptional people like those recognised in this year’s Queen’s Birthday Honours. I am grateful for their outstanding contribution.

Recipients include:

Paul Symington

Lately Chairman of Symington Family Estates and John E Fells & Sons, receives a CMG [Companion of the Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George] for services to UK and Portugal relations and Social and Environmental Sustainability in the Douro region of Portugal.

Paul Symington is recognised for an exceptional and sustained contribution as the former Managing Director, then Chairman, of Symington Family Estates in the Douro Valley, Portugal. During Mr Symington’s period as Chairman, he and his cousins transformed the company from a medium sized producer into a thriving business, becoming the world’s largest Port wine producer. He and his family also spearheaded an ambitious long-term sustainability strategy, which has seen the company become the largest organic wine producer in the north of Portugal, invest in innovative research and development to adapt to climate change and deliver a 20-year programme of social impact initiatives in the Douro region.

Although recently retired, Mr Symington remains closely connected to his family business and a powerful advocate for the many social and environmental causes that he has championed throughout his career. His principled approach to business and very public attachment to British values have greatly enhanced the UK’s reputation in Portugal.

On learning of his award, Paul Symington said:

I was born less than 100 metres from the Douro river and my family has been dedicated to this great wine region for centuries, so it was with pride that I learnt of this award as I have always striven to enhance the ancient friendship between the UK and Portugal.

Helen Clarkson

Chief Executive Officer, Climate Group, receives an OBE [Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire] for services to tackling climate change and supporting the UK Presidency of the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26).

Helen Clarkson is recognised for an outstanding and sustained contribution to tackling climate change. She has been the Chief Executive Officer of Climate Group since 2017 and under her leadership Climate Group has driven forward global initiatives that have made significant progress in reducing emissions. A number of these, such as EV100 (members commit to all their vehicles being electric), EP100 (members commit to improved energy efficiency) and RE100 (members commit to sourcing all their energy from renewable sources) directly supported COP26 campaigns and helped to provide a clear way for businesses to implement commitments made. The Under2 Coalition led by Climate Group, which comprises state and regional governments representing 50% of global GDP, also increased its ambition adopting a new net zero commitment.

She was a key partner for COP26 in driving climate change commitments from businesses and other non-state actors and providing a major focus for 2 of the 5 COP26 campaigns in particular: clean transport and power.

On learning of her award, Helen Clarkson said:

I’m honoured to have been given this award, which recognises not just my work but all of the team members at Climate Group, who are working hard to accelerate climate action. In 2021 there was a lot of progress and it’s great for that to be recognised, but there’s still so much more to do to deliver the change that’s needed – and we’ll certainly keep pushing.

Heather Muntaner

Lately Head teacher, Queen’s College, Mallorca, Spain, receives an MBE [Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire] for services to the promotion of British Education, Language and Culture in Spain.

Heather Muntaner, Head teacher of Queen’s College in Mallorca for over 3 decades is recognised for her exceptional contribution to the promotion of British education, language and culture in Spain. Under her leadership the school grew and developed into one of the most outstanding schools in the Balearic Islands, offering a high quality British education in Spain to both British and International students.

In addition to her role as Head teacher, Mrs Muntaner was a member of the National Association of British Schools in Spain (NABSS) inspection service where she served for 20 years as a school inspector. For almost a decade she made a significant and entirely voluntary contribution to the NABSS Executive Committee, initially as secretary and later as a member of the inspection Monitoring Committee. Her dedication and commitment over many years has positively impacted the delivery of high quality British education, not just in Mallorca but across Spain.

On learning of her award, Heather Muntaner said:

I am truly honoured and very happy to receive this award. Working in a British school in Spain with children and young people of all nationalities and languages has been a most gratifying experience, as has the privilege of working with the National Association of British schools in Spain, an association committed to British education and to the development and high standards of all its member schools. An award is not achieved by one person alone, but by teams working together, so I would like to share this honour with all those colleagues and team members, past and present, who have worked with and supported me. Many thanks!

Pauline Webber

Retired Teacher and Founder, The Nick Webber Trust, receives a BEM [British Empire Medal] for services to Charity, to Education and to Justice in Malawi.

Pauline Webber is recognised for an outstanding contribution to charity, education and justice in Malawi through her work as the Founder of the Nick Webber Trust. Pauline, and her children, set up the Trust in memory of her son, Nick Webber, who died tragically in a car accident at the age of 28 while working in Malawi as a volunteer lawyer. Her aim was for the Trust to continue the work that her son was doing by supporting some of Malawi’s poorest and most-marginalised people through funding projects in education, healthcare and community support, as well as access to justice.

The charity that she founded, and still chairs, has provided the funding for many such projects including over 40 bursaries for secondary education, bursaries for law undergraduates committed to legal aid work, and a safe house for survivors of domestic abuse.

On learning of her award, Pauline Webber said:

I am surprised but delighted to accept this award on behalf of all who support Nick Webber Trust in so many ways, and dedicate it to the memory of my beloved late son, Nick.

• UK’s Jeremy Quin first foreign Defence Minister to speak at Canada’s Defence Exhibition
• Focus on UK-Canadian science and technology collaboration
• HMS Protector to join Canada’s Arctic deployment for High North security exercise

Further support to Ukraine, the security of the High North, and science and technology collaboration were the focus of discussions as UK Defence Minister Jeremy Quin delivered a keynote speech to Canada’s annual defence exhibition, CANSEC.

Part of a three-day engagement in Ottawa, the UK’s Defence Procurement Minister was the first foreign Defence Minister to be invited to speak at the event where he engaged with key Defence organisations present, including Airbus, Babcock, BAE Systems, Leonardo, Marshalls, QinetiQ and Rolls Royce, and hosting a wider industry roundtable.

The keynote speech followed meetings with his Canadian counterparts, Minister for Innovation, Science & Economic Development, Francois Philippe Champagne, Minister for Public Services and Procurement Canada, Filomena Tassi, and Minister for National Defence, Anita Anand.

As part of the UK’s commitment to the region, British vessel HMS Protector will shortly visit ports on the St Lawrence River before being the first ever Royal Navy ship to join Operation NANOOK, Canada’s annual High North deployment. The focus will be on improving the response to security issues in such a challenging environment, as well as further collaborative work around science, technology and climate change.

UK Defence Procurement Minister, Jeremy Quin said:

Whether in the North Atlantic, the Indo-Pacific or the High North we need to work together to defend our values.

Canada and the United Kingdom enjoy a steadfast bond, and it is through such alliances that we can protect ourselves against those who wish to undermine the international rules-based order.

It has been a privilege to meet my Canadian counterparts and speak to industry partners. I am left in little doubt that as two key NATO allies, we have the shared capability, the shared industry and the shared talent to address current and future threats.

Through bilateral meetings, Minister Quin praised Canada for their provision of two C130 transport planes to support aid to Ukraine from European partners, as well as supplying Howitzers and thousands of rounds of ammunition. He welcomed Canada’s recent commitment to provide $500 million to further bolster Ukrainian’s defensive and humanitarian efforts.

Being the only two countries that are simultaneously members of the UN, Commonwealth, NATO, FIVE EYES, G7 and G20, the UK and Canada boast a strong Defence relationship. This was exemplified by Canada’s HMCS Winnipeg’s involvement in joint exercises in the Pacific with the UK’s Carrier Strike Group’s deployment last year.

Today (1 June 2022) the Transport Secretary and Aviation Minister led a productive meeting with senior leaders from the aviation industry, including airports, airlines and ground handling companies.

The meeting was urgently called to discuss exceptional disruption seen across UK airports, after thousands of flights were cancelled due to staff shortages at airports and airlines.

Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps began the meeting by reiterating his concern at the scenes seen at airports this week, while noting that not all operators have been affected by the issues in the same way, and he noted the pressures which the airlines and operators are working under.

Keen to make sure consumers do not lose out, he emphasised the steps the government is taking to boost consumer rights, including recently consulting on using our Brexit freedoms to enhance consumer protections, and committing to publish an aviation passenger charter to ensure consumers can access information about their rights all in one place.

He emphasised his concerns that airline passengers are being unfairly sold tickets for holidays they cannot go on, and will continue to discuss with the sector options for introducing automatic refunds for passengers.

He highlighted that new protections include enhancing the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA’s) powers to enforce aviation consumer protection laws, and that it has consulted on making it mandatory for airlines operating in the UK to be a member of an alternative dispute resolution scheme, which is available to consumers if they feel their consumer rights have been breached by an airline and the airline has not resolved the issue.

He also reiterated that airline bosses should have been preparing for a surge in passenger demand following 2 years of travel closures.

He restated that along with the close engagement between government and the sector, and changing to law to alleviate pressures on background checks for new recruits, our longstanding support for the sector is unwavering.

The government and aviation industry will form a working group ahead of the summer holidays to work through issues of shared concern together.

Both the Transport Secretary and the Aviation Minister, Robert Courts, stressed that the government remains committed to supporting the sector following the pandemic and this follows the £8 billion package of support that has been made available to the industry during the pandemic.

The Transport Secretary and Aviation Minister also reiterated the importance of creating a competitive, attractive market for workers and called on the sector’s leadership to offer better packages and build a resilient workforce to meet demand.

Speaking after his meeting with the aviation leadership, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said:

Today’s meeting was a chance to hear from airports and airlines first-hand what went wrong this week. The scenes we’re witnessing at airports are heart-breaking, with holidaymakers missing out on their first trips abroad after the pandemic.

We’re grateful to those airlines and operators who have continued to deliver good services despite the current pressures and we recognise that not all operators have been affected in the same way.

I also understand the resourcing strains on the aviation sector but it does not excuse poor planning and overbooking flights that they cannot service. The companies who have seen the most disruption need to learn from those who ran services smoothly.

We will continue to monitor the situation closely to make sure consumers don’t lose out from any further disruption.

Both myself and the Aviation Minister have made the changes needed to allow the sector to prepare for summer, but now we need industry to do their bit.

We have been crystal clear – run services properly and according to schedule or provide swift, appropriate compensation. We do not want to see a repeat of this over the summer – the first post-COVID-19 summer season – and will be meeting again in the coming weeks to understand the progress that is being made.

Chief Executive of Airlines UK Tim Alderslade said:

We want to work collaboratively with ministers to resolve these issues as quickly as possible, in good time for the summer peak and it was good to discuss options with the Transport Secretary during what was a productive meeting.

We ultimately have to work together to solve this. Aviation is a complex eco-system with lots of moving parts and we can’t operate in isolation.

This isn’t an airline issue or an airport issue or a government issue. We’re in this together and we look forward to exploring options with ministers to move the sector forwards as we approach the summer.

Chief Executive of the Airport Operators Association Karen Dee said:

Our meeting today was a good opportunity to discuss the challenges currently facing airports following the devastating impact of the pandemic but also to set out how, working closely with government, industry is putting its full effort behind getting passengers away smoothly this weekend and preparing for the summer.

Aviation is vital for the UK’s economic success and it’s in all of our interests to ensure the sector recovers and plays it full role

Today’s agenda for the meeting covered:

• the issues seen at airports this week and why this happened
• how consumers will be better and faster protected
• what measures will be taken now by the sector to prevent disruption over summer

In attendance were:

• Airlines UK
• Airport Operators Association(AOA)
• Birmingham Airport
• Bristol Airport
• British Airways
• Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)
• DHL Ground Handling
• easyJet
• Gatwick Airport
• Jet2
• London City Airport
• LoganAir
• Luton Airport
• Newcastle Airport
• Swissport
• TUI Airways
• Virgin Atlantic Airways
• International Air Transportation Association (IATA)