Petition · past parliament
Awarded the Elizabeth Cross, to families of NHS workers who die of Covid-19.
Rejected
21 signatures
What the petition asks
We need to nationally recognise the sacrifice being made by NHS workers and their families. The award is currently presented to families of military personnel who die during conflict; today the NHS workers deserve similar recognition. Any associated ribbon should be NHS Blue, embroidered with NHS.
During times of national crisis, it is only correct the nation recognises individual sacrifice and the effect it has on family. In this case, the introduction of the Elizabeth Cross to recognise family loss during this unique time of crisis. I would hope that Parliament, would find time to legislate where necessary and petition Her Majesty, to allow the use of the Elizabeth Cross in these circumstances. Why should we do this? Because it is the right thing to do!
Why it was rejected
It asked for something that is not the responsibility of the UK Government or Parliament.
We cannot accept petitions that call for specific awards or honours to be given to individuals or organisations, because we can only accept petitions about matters for which the Government or Parliament are responsible for.
There is an independent process for considering nominations for awards and honours, and advising the Queen on granting these, so it is not something the Government or Parliament can do.
The Government has announced that it is delaying Her Majesty The Queen’s Birthday honours list until the Autumn so people who have made a contribution to the fight against coronavirus can be recognised and celebrated: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/oliver-dowdens-statement-on-coronavirus-covid-19-20-may-2020
You can nominate someone who has made an exceptional contribution to the response to the coronavirus crisis in the UK for an award here: https://www.gov.uk/honours/nominate-someone-for-coronavirus-work
You may wish to sign these petitions calling for a similar action:
Award Covid-19 medals to all emergency services and involved armed forces: Award Covid-19 medals to all emergency services and involved armed forces
A medal to honour the fortitude of people working in essential occupations: A medal to honour the fortitude of people working in essential occupations
Award medals to the retired doctors and nurses who returned to NHS for COVID19: Award medals to the retired doctors and nurses who returned to NHS for COVID19
Award posthumous medals to NHS and other frontline workers; victims of covid-19: Award posthumous medals to NHS and other frontline workers; victims of covid-19.
You can find out more about coronavirus and how you can protect yourself and others here:
www.gov.uk/coronavirus
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
The Government has also created an online service to help you out what you can do if you’re struggling because of coronavirus: https://www.gov.uk/find-coronavirus-support
You can read NHS tips to help if you are worried about coronavirus here: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/coronavirus-covid-19-anxiety-tips
You can read impartial analysis of the Government response to coronavirus and policy developments here: https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/coronavirus/
You may also be interested to know that because of the large number of petitions that have been started in relation to coronavirus, the Petitions Committee has been questioning the Government about its response to the coronavirus outbreak.
Find out more: https://committees.parliament.uk/work/192/the-governments-response-to-coronavirus/
There is an independent process for considering nominations for awards and honours, and advising the Queen on granting these, so it is not something the Government or Parliament can do.
The Government has announced that it is delaying Her Majesty The Queen’s Birthday honours list until the Autumn so people who have made a contribution to the fight against coronavirus can be recognised and celebrated: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/oliver-dowdens-statement-on-coronavirus-covid-19-20-may-2020
You can nominate someone who has made an exceptional contribution to the response to the coronavirus crisis in the UK for an award here: https://www.gov.uk/honours/nominate-someone-for-coronavirus-work
You may wish to sign these petitions calling for a similar action:
Award Covid-19 medals to all emergency services and involved armed forces: Award Covid-19 medals to all emergency services and involved armed forces
A medal to honour the fortitude of people working in essential occupations: A medal to honour the fortitude of people working in essential occupations
Award medals to the retired doctors and nurses who returned to NHS for COVID19: Award medals to the retired doctors and nurses who returned to NHS for COVID19
Award posthumous medals to NHS and other frontline workers; victims of covid-19: Award posthumous medals to NHS and other frontline workers; victims of covid-19.
You can find out more about coronavirus and how you can protect yourself and others here:
www.gov.uk/coronavirus
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
The Government has also created an online service to help you out what you can do if you’re struggling because of coronavirus: https://www.gov.uk/find-coronavirus-support
You can read NHS tips to help if you are worried about coronavirus here: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/coronavirus-covid-19-anxiety-tips
You can read impartial analysis of the Government response to coronavirus and policy developments here: https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/coronavirus/
You may also be interested to know that because of the large number of petitions that have been started in relation to coronavirus, the Petitions Committee has been questioning the Government about its response to the coronavirus outbreak.
Find out more: https://committees.parliament.uk/work/192/the-governments-response-to-coronavirus/
Timeline
| 11 Apr 2020 | Petition opened for signatures |
| 26 May 2020 | Rejected by the Petitions Committee |
Key facts
Signatures
21
Status
Rejected
Rejected
26 May 2020
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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.