Dodds is one of Starmer's oldest parliamentary allies. He made her the shadow chancellor when he was elected as Labour leader in April 2020, but replaced her with Rachel Reeves in May 2021 during a reshuffle after a crushing by-election defeat in Hartlepool. In government Dodds served as development and equalities minister, but resigned in February over plans to cut international aid to fund an increase in defence spending. She has been the MP for Oxford East since 2017.
Elba, known for his roles in The Wire and Luther, was knighted for services to young people in recognition of his charity work at the Elba Hope Foundation, which supports community empowerment, education, youth advocacy and sustainable development. He said: I hope we can do more to draw attention to the importance of sustained, practical support for young people and to the responsibility we all share to help them find an alternative to violence.