- Rowling rejects two peerage offers
- Badenoch praises Rowling's gender views
- Rowling stands firm on declining peerage
J.K. Rowling has publicly confirmed that she turned down two offers of a peerage in the House of Lords and would refuse a third if it were extended.
The acclaimed author made her comments following remarks from Conservative Party leadership contender Kemi Badenoch, who suggested she would grant Rowling a peerage due to her controversial views on gender a position that critics have labeled as transphobic.
In a post on X, Rowling stated, “I’ve already turned down a peerage twice, once under Labour and once under the Tories. If offered one a third time, I still wouldn’t take it.” She added, “It’s considered bad form to talk about this but I’ll make an exception given the very particular circumstances.” In a lighthearted remark, she noted, “It’s not her, it’s me.”
Badenoch praised Rowling in an interview with Talk TV, expressing her belief that protections for women should be grounded in biological sex rather than self-identified gender. She stated, “I don’t know whether she would take it, but I certainly would give her a peerage.”
The MP for North West Essex also commended Baroness Cass for her review of NHS children’s gender services, indicating that she had facilitated Cass’s peerage.
Most peerages in the House of Lords are granted by the monarch based on the prime minister’s recommendations, with nominations vetted by the House of Lords Appointments Commission.
Rowling, who received an OBE in 2001 and was made a Companion of Honour in 2017 by Prince William, was offered peerages during the New Labour era, while she was still in the midst of writing the Harry Potter series, which concluded with its final book in 2007. Following this, she has penned various articles, plays, and a crime series under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith, titled “Cormoran Strike,” published throughout the 2010s.
Had she accepted a peerage, Rowling would have likely been titled Baroness Rowling. This would have afforded her the opportunity to contribute to Parliament’s second chamber, where she could consider draft laws and participate in select committees.
