Scotland should set up its own Caledonian alternative to the 'discredited' UK honours system, according to leading voices in the arts, literature and politics.

The new push to replace the UK honours system centres on making the prestigious Saltire Society Awards the basis of any Scottish alternative - a move the society supports.

Among those backing a new Scottish honours system are actors Elaine C Smith and David Hayman, writer James Robertson and the SNP’s culture spokesman at Westminster John Nicolson MP.

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The calls came as respected writer and broadcaster Ruth Wishart delivered a keynote speech to mark the 80th anniversary of the Saltire Society – an apolitical organisation set up in 1936 to promote and celebrate Scottish culture and heritage.

Every year citizens are recognised by the society which hands out a series of awards for contribution to Scottish life, including the coveted Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun Awards, previously won by Donald Dewar, George Davie, Dolinna MacLennan, Robin Jenkins, George Mackay Brown and William McIlvanney.

The existing UK honours system is said to recognise people who have “made achievements in public life and committed themselves to serving and helping Britain,” according to the UK government website.

Twice a year the monarch names knights and dames and signs off on OBEs, MBEs and peerages.

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The public can nominate individuals but the majority of nods come from government departments and in years gone by prime ministers have been accused of using honours for leverage and to stack the House of Lords with peers who will do their bidding.

Scotland Yard carried out a 16-month investigation into the alleged sale of honours by the Labour Party but the Crown Prosecution Service announced in July 2007 that there was insufficient evidence for a prosecution.

Wishart – who turned down an honour when Tony Blair was in Downing Street - insists the system is “discredited” and her call that the Saltire Society Awards should be the alternative has been backed by the convenor of The Saltire Society Council.

Wishart said: “The UK honours system is now wholly discredited, still class ridden, and probably beyond repair...The honours lists continue to be littered with people given baubles for political ‘services...It’s also increasingly a vehicle for honouring celebrities; so much so that even the staunchly establishment Daily Telegraph was moved to suggest the latest list had been drawn up by Take A Break magazine."

She added: “We can’t fix this system in Scotland, but we do have the chance to set up our own under the auspices of the Saltire Society whose awards are apolitical and egalitarian.”

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The Saltire Society Awards recognises excellence in engineering, literature, architecture and the arts after a public nomination process.

Crucially, the awards are not connected to any government department, political process or unelected monarch.

Actor Elaine C Smith said she would turn down “any honour with British Empire in the title”.

Smith said: “I've always felt the honours system in the UK to be far from fit for the peoples of these islands. If you say that publicly - particularly as someone in the public eye - then it’s assumed that’s just because you haven't got one and therefore it’s not due to principle. Well, with me it’s all principle.

“I’ve always felt that people in my profession are rewarded enough - any work you do in the community or for charity should be because you can, not because you might get a bauble out of it - in fact showbiz types who accept these honours always go down a bit in my estimation.

“However, I do believe that there should be a decent honours system that truly reflects the work, service and sacrifice that so many ordinary people do every day in life - they deserve to be recognised by the rest of us for the good they do.

“From lollipop ladies and janitors to domestics and teachers - those who go beyond their own job description for the good of others. Apart from the fact that the UK honours are relatively meaningless and can be bought on many levels, they don't reflect the work and contributions made by so many in Scotland.”

Actor David Hayman said: “I wholeheartedly support the proposal that the Saltire Society Awards replace the morally bankrupt, discredited, empire-focused national awards we have at the moment. The idea that the current gongs are stamped with the message 'For God and Empire' in the 21st Century is just too silly to contemplate.

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“Let us have our own awards that recognise the many good-hearted, selfless and brave people who dedicate their lives on a daily basis to helping others. They are the true heroes of our country.”

Scottish writer and poet James Robertson, whose book ‘The Testament of Gideon Mack’ was long-listed for the 2006 Man Booker Prize, echoed Wishart, Smith and Hayman.

He said: “The UK honours system is so discredited that a Scottish alternative based on the Fletcher of Saltoun awards is well worth consideration.

“I would welcome a public debate about how true achievement might be recognised in a modern Scotland, because by having that debate we would have to address all aspects of the present system of privilege, procurement and patronage, including the continued existence of the monarchy from which that system derives its authority.”

The SNP’s culture spokesman at Westminster John Nicolson MP also indicated his support for a fresh look at how we honour citizens in Scotland.

He said: “Ruth is absolutely correct to highlight the discredited nature of the current honours system. Far too many gongs are handed out to political cronies, party donors, and anonymous time servers. Fundamental reform is long overdue.”

Left-wing Rise candidate for Glasgow, Cat Boyd, concurred, adding: “As a republican, I would like to see a system of recognition which doesn't rely on an out-dated monarchy to recognise the invaluable contribution made by ordinary people to our society.”

Professor Ian Brown, convenor of the Saltire Society Council backed Wishart’s call for the Saltire Awards to form the basis of an alternative.

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He said: “The Fletcher of Saltoun awards are recognised as the premier, and absolutely non-political, awards that mark outstanding contribution to aspects of Scottish life, public, artistic, scientific.

“Ruth Wishart's proposal they become the basis of a Scottish honours system that recognises genuine achievement, as do some current honours awards, but without dilution by those that come - as one knight said - with the rations, is more than welcome. Let's do it.”