FORMER Richmond MP Lord Hague has been honoured in a traditional ceremony of a guild which dates back more than 600 years.

The Tory peer underwent ritual known as cloathing before being made a liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Stationers and Newspaper Makers.

The event at Stationers’ Hall in the City of London also saw Dr Vinton Gray Cerf, one of the founders of the internet, awarded the honorary freedom and livery of the company.

Lord Hague said: “It is with great pride that I have at last become a liveryman of the Stationers’ Company.

"Stationers play an active and important part within their associated industries and I plan to become involved in the wonderful series of events that they stage for the printing and communications industry.

"With my ongoing interest in women’s issues, it is perfect that I should be cloathed by the first woman master, Helen Esmonde.

"This is truly a special year as becoming a stationer adds to my recent honour of becoming a member of the House of Lords.”