The West Midlands mayor leads a combined authority that was created in 2016 and covers metropolitan councils in the cities of Birmingham, Coventry and Wolverhampton, as well those in Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull, and Walsall.

The role is one of six such posts that were created across the UK in 2017.

Sir Andy said creating the combined authority had been a “huge endeavour” and that the knighthood recognised the hard work of “many thousands of unsung people”.

He was appointed a CBE in 2015, but said the knighthood “genuinely was a complete surprise” and it was not something he had thought about.

When asked what he was most proud of during his time as mayor, he said he felt the West Midlands had been lacking self belief in 2017 and that he had helped create a “confidence in the region”.

He also said he believed he had a small role in “creating confidence in the mayoral model”, which Labour now intends to introduce all around the country.