Labour's Denis Healey dies at 98
Former chancellor Denis Healey has died at the age of 98, his family has said.
Lord Healey was Labour's defence secretary from 1964 to 1970 and chancellor of the exchequer from 1974 to 1979 before becoming deputy party leader in opposition in 1980.
He served as an MP for Leeds for 40 years from 1952 before joining the House of Lords in 1992.
His family said he died peacefully at his home in Sussex on Saturday morning, after a short illness.
Lord Healey also came close to winning the Labour leadership in 1980, finishing just 10 votes behind winner Michael Foot.
BBC political correspondent Iain Watson said his death marked the end of an era in Labour's history.
'Labour giant'
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn tweeted: "Denis Healey was a Labour giant whose record of service to party and country stands as his testament. All our thoughts are with his family."
A defining moment in his career was when, as chancellor, he applied for an emergency loan from the the International Monetary Fund in an effort to save the pound from collapse.
A graduate of Oxford university, he also served in the Army, joining operations in North Africa, Sicily and Italy during World War Two.
His wife, Edna, died in 2010.
Obituary
PA
Denis Healey, an intellectual heavyweight who had a range of interests that stretched far beyond the narrow world of Westminster politics, was known for his tough, no-holds-barred style of debate.
His relish for the cut-and-thrust of politics served him well during long periods in government in the 1960s and 1970s, and in the internal struggles that re-shaped Labour during its years in opposition in the 1980s.
His trademark bushy eyebrows, colourful turn of phrase and expertise on a range of musical instruments, including the piano and double bass, made him a regular fixture on television and a favourite target of impressionists.
But he had a sharp mind and could fell opponents with a devastating one-liner, once likening debating with Conservative Chancellor Geoffrey Howe to being "savaged by a dead sheep" and accusing Margaret Thatcher of "glorying in slaughter" during the Falklands conflict.
No comments:
Post a Comment