The Queen personally appointed Blair as Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, the most senior order of knighthood.

Queen Elizabeth II on Friday announced a knighthood for former prime minister Tony Blair, while the traditional New Year's Honours also decorated officials who spearheaded Britain's fight against Covid-19.

The Queen personally appointed Blair as Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, the most senior order of knighthood.

She previously knighted former Conservative prime minister John Major in this way in 2005.

Blair, now 68, defeated Major with a landslide Labour victory in 1997 and spent a decade in office.

His successes included securing peace in Northern Ireland and massively expanding gay rights. But he was widely reviled at home for his support for the 2003 US-led war in Iraq.

Blair said "It is an immense honour to be appointed Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, and I am deeply grateful to Her Majesty the Queen."

The main New Year's Honours list gave knighthoods to Chris Whitty, the UK government's chief medical adviser, and England's deputy chief medical officer Jonathan Van-Tam.

Van-Tam in particular has gained a cult following over his colourful use of metaphors involving football and trains at Downing Street news conferences.

The Queen's traditional annual honours recognise the achievements and contributions of people across Britain, including a minority from the worlds of showbiz, sport and politics.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson then signs off on the choices, before the Queen awards the honour at ceremonies during the year.

This time nearly one in five honours were virus-related, the Cabinet Office said.

The recipients "have inspired and entertained us and given so much to their communities in the UK or in many cases around the world," Johnson said.

The chief scientific advisor to the government, Patrick Vallance, became a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath after receiving a knighthood in 2019. His counterparts in Scotland and Wales were also knighted Friday.