The Honourable: Encyclopedia II - The Honourable - British usage

The Honourable - British usage

The Honourable - Entitlement

In the United Kingdom, all sons and daughters of viscounts and barons and the younger sons of earls are styled with this prefix. (The daughters and younger sons of dukes and marquesses and the daughters of earls have the higher style of Lord or Lady before their first names, and the eldest sons of dukes, marquesses and earls are known by one of their father or mother's subsidiary titles.) The style is only a courtesy one, however, and on legal documents they are described as, for instance, John Smith, Esq., commonly called The Honourable John Smith. As the wives of sons of peers share the titles of their husbands, the wives of the sons of viscounts and barons and the younger sons of earls are known as, e.g., The Hon. Mrs John Smith.

Some persons are entitled to the prefix by virtue of their offices. Rules exist that allow certain individuals to keep the prefix The Honourable even after retirement.

• Judges of the High Court and other superior courts in the Commonwealth (if the judge is a knight, the style Sir John Smith is used socially instead of The Honourable Mr Justice Smith.);
• Members of executive councils (and by extension, cabinets);
• Members of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada;
• Members of legislative councils (or senates) where the legislature is bicameral; and
• Certain representatives of the Sovereign, e.g. Lieutenant-Governors of Canadian provinces.

Many corporate entities are also entitled to the style, for example:

• The Honourable the Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in Parliament Assembled;
• The Honourable East India Company;
• The Honourable Artillery Company; etc.

The Honourable - Usage

The style The Honourable is always written on envelopes (where it is usually abbreviated to The Hon), and formally elsewhere, in which case the style Mr or Esq. is omitted. In speech, however, The Honourable John Smith is referred to simply as Mr John Smith.

In the House of Commons and other lower houses of Parliament and other legislatures, members refer to each other as honourable members etc. out of courtesy, despite the fact that they are not entitled to the style in writing.

Where a person is entitled to the prefix The Right Honourable he will use this higher style instead of The Honourable.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "British usage", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki