TRIBUTES are being paid to veteran Crewe and Nantwich MP Gwyneth Dunwoody who died last night aged 77 after a short illness.
Mrs Dunwoody had been in hospital after emergency heart surgery on Thursday and died peacefully, according to her son.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown said: “So many people will be so sad to hear of the death of Gwyneth Dunwoody. She was always her own person, fiercely independent. She was politics at its best, a great Parliamentarian.”
Born in Fulham, London, in 1930, she joined the Labour Party in 1946. She began her political career as a councillor in Totnes, South Devon, but stood as the candidate for Exeter in 1964 and won the seat in 1966.
Mrs Dunwoody lost her seat in 1970, but came back to the house in 1974 as MP for Crewe and Nantwich. She was variously a Frontbench opposition spokesman on foreign and commonwealth affairs, health and transport, and was a member of the European Parliament from 1974 to 1979.
Former Labour MP Tony Benn said Mrs Dunwoody always spoke her mind. He added: “She was a very remarkable woman and a very powerful Member of Parliament. She took a very independent stance on the European Union and was respected by the house.”
Crewe Chronicle editor Dave Fox: “Many people in Crewe and Nantwich will be profoundly saddened by Gwyneth’s death. She was a great fighter for her constituency right up until the end and someone whose opinions were always widely respected. She will be sorely missed.”
Mrs Dunwoody’s son David said his mother died in “a gentle and calm way.” She had a daughter, two sons and 10 grandchildren.
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