In The News

Tributes are paid to veteran Labour MP Sir Stuart Bell

Tributes are paid to veteran Labour MP Sir Stuart Bell

TRIBUTES have been paid to the veteran Labour MP Sir Stuart Bell who has passed away. He was 74.

Sir Stuart had been a successful commercial lawyer before entering Parliament in 1983 as MP for Middlesborough. He had been selected for the safe Labour seat from a shortlist which had included a young Tony Blair.

But Labour’s long period out of power was to deny Sir Stuart the opportunity to hold ministerial office. A year after entering the Commons, Sir Stuart, who was knighted in 2004, had been appointed as the shadow spokesman on Northern Ireland by the then Labour leader Neil Kinnock.

Sir Stuart was never one to shy away from expressing his views in a forthright manner and in 1987 he became embroiled in what was eventually branded as the Cleveland child sex abuse scandal — after dozens of children had been incorrectly diagnosed as having been abused. Sir Stuart battled on behalf of the parents and demanded that action be taken against medical experts.

When Labour swept to power in 1997, Sir Stuart was by then 58 and was not selected by Tony Blair as one of his ministers. There were some who believed that the new Prime Minister did not like the MP for Middlesborough, but when Sir Stuart published his autobiography he used the title Tony Really Loves Me.

The Prime Minister did appoint Sir Stuart as second church estates commissioner — which involved him answering questions from MPs on matters regarding the Church of England. He held the post until 2010. 

Sir Stuart also held powerful positions within the House of Commons, including being chairman of the finance and services select committee. 

When the MPs’ expenses scandal broke in 2009, Sir Stuart came out battling for his fellow politicians (see below), accusing Sir Thomas Legg, who had been appointed to investigate the scandal, of retrospectively changing the rules.

Sir Stuart faced criticism in 2011 when it was revealed that he had not held constituency surgery since 1997, but he pointed out that he instead met with voters on an appointments-only basis since he had been threatened by one constituent.

For many years before becoming an MP, Sir Stuart had lived and worked in Paris. In 2006 he was awarded the Légion d’Honneur for his contribution to British-French relations.

To view an interview in which Sir Stuart Bell expresses his belief that MPs were facing unfair rulings by Sir Thomas Legg in the wake of the expenses scandal, click here.

 

View previous In the News items: Scientist behind cloning breakthrough passes away, Tributes are paid to former cricketer Kevin Curran, Former PoW Eric Lomax passes away, Atom bomb physicist Robert Christy passes away, Great session guitarist Big Jim Sullivan passes away, Tributes are paid to historian Eric Hobsbawm, Motown producer Frank Wilson passes away, Veteran actor Herbert Lom passes away, Singer Andy Williams passes away, Former football manager John Bond passes away, Tributes are paid to Cookstown funeral director, Tributes are paid to top wine merchant, Former London gangster Charlie Richardson passes away, American poet Louis Simpson passes away, Funeral takes place of tragic father and sons, Former footballer Jimmy Andrews passes away, Man behind advances in Formula 1 racing safety passes away, Discovered remains may be those of Richard III, Film producer Jake Eberts passes away, Inventor of modern laptop computer Bill Moggridge passes away, Wildlife expert Terry Nutkins passes away, Singer songwriter Joe South passes away, Funeral of motorcycle road racer takes place, Oscar nominated actor Michael Clarke Duncan passes away, Oscar nominated actor Michael Clarke Duncan passes away, Comedian and entertainer Max Bygraves passes away, Former junior minister Sir Rhodes Boyson passes away, Former Royal Navy frogman Sydney Knowles passes away, First man on the moon Neil Armstrong passes away, Character actor william Windom passes away, Amy Winehouse Foundation supports hospice in Dublin, Author Nina Bawden passes away, Comedian Phyllis Diller passes away, Tributes are paid to singer songwriter Scott McKenzie, Tragic mother Winnie Johnson passes away, Science fiction writer Harry Harrison passes away, Disability rights pioneer Lord Morris passes away, Darts broadcaster Sid Waddell passes away, Special effects expert Carlo Rambaldi passes away, Astronomer Sir Bernard Lovell passes away, Art critic and writer Robert Hughes passes away, Famous violinist Ruggiero Ricci passes away, Vital equipment is donated in memory of Joby Murphy, Remains of Ned Kelly to be handed over, Irish author Maeve Binchy passes away, TV great Geoffrey Hughes passes away, Antiques expert David Barby passes away, Actress Mary Tamm passes away, First US woman in space passes away, Tributes are paid to actor Simon Ward, Former News at Ten presenter passes away or Bollywood superstar Rejesh Khanna passes away

 

If you have a relative or a friend who has passed away and feel they should be mentioned in our In the News section, then please email us.