red ribbon—(the ribbon of ) the Order of the Bath:
- He [Guizot] had his red ribbon on and also his golden fleece.
red tape—bureaucratic routine:
- There is so much red tape involved in obtaining a contract that it is sometimes almost not worth the time.
Note: Neither expression correlates in meaning with the phrase red band—(UK Prison) a privileged inmate trusted as messenger without supervision:
- I would then have a cup of coffee brought to me by a “red band.”