The start of 2024 has been devastating when it comes to celebrity deaths with the passing of Mary Poppins star, Glynis Johns. This week's death is a political figure, Sir Tony Lloyd.
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Even in the world of politics there has been some sad news after former Labour Deputy leader, Tom Watson revealed he had been diagnosed with a form of prostate cancer. Sadly, today’s news is even more tragic as Sir Tony Lloyd has died at the age of 73.
Sir Tony Lloyd has previously been diagnosed with an incurable disease and it seems as though the disease has taken over.
Sir Tony Lloyd has died aged 73
If you follow political figures, you will know that Sir Tony Lloyd was diagnosed and treated for blood cancer and received chemotherapy, sadly, over the weekend, it turned into an aggressive and untreatable form of leukaemia, as per Sky News.
In a statement on X, Loyd’s family posted
Our beloved 'Joe,' 'Dad' and 'Grandad'. He died peacefully this morning surrounded by family, as was his wish.
They added that Sir Lloyd had been working up to ‘a few days before his death’ and that he had devoted his life to ‘serving and making a difference to the lives of those he met’.
Sir Tony Lloyd’s legacy
Sir Tony Lloyd had been a Labour MP since 1983 and then from 1997 to 1999, he was a foreign minister under Tony Blair’s government. Sir Lloyd was then appointed as shadow housing minister. As per BBC News, he became chair of the parliamentary Labour Party.
In 2012, Sir Lloyd decided to return to local politics and left Westminster, where he became Greater Manchester’s police and crime commissioner. In 2017, Sir Tony returned to parliament serving the constituency of Rochdale.
In 2020, at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, Sir Tony contracted Covid-19 and was put in intensive care and was on a ventilator for 10 days. The Labour veteran decided to take a step back from his role to help his recovery. However, he remained a dedicated backbench constituency MP.
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Sources used:
BBC News: ‘Sir Tony Lloyd: Rochdale Labour MP dies 'peacefully at home’
Sky News: ‘Sir Tony Lloyd: Veteran Labour MP for Rochdale dies aged 73’
