Tributes after 'outstanding' former MP dies

The former Labour MP Mark Fisher has died after a short illness, his family has said.

Mr Fisher, 81, represented Stoke-on-Trent Central from 1983 until 2010, when he stood down due to health reasons and was succeeded by Tristram Hunt.

Passionate about the arts, Eton-educated Mr Fisher was the son of a Tory MP with aristocratic relatives.

Former veteran Labour MP and colleague Joan Walley said she was sorry to hear of the loss of an "oustanding constituency MP".

Ms Walley added Mr Fisher was devoted to the North Staffordshire area, and although his background made him an "unlikely candidate as a Stoke-on-Trent politician, you couldn't fault him for his service to the Labour party".

She said he had been very principled, and would be remembered by many for bringing government investment to the city during the Blair years.

He had also laid the groundwork for Labour policy on arts and culture, she added.

Mark Fisher spent a year on the front bench as arts minister in Tony Blair's government, before being sacked for rebelling on a vote on the Competition Act.

His commitment to the arts started before he became an MP, when he worked to set up the New Vic Theatre in Newcastle-under-Lyme.

Barry Seckerson knew Mr Fisher as a fellow Labour Party member in the 80s, and became one of his constituents.

He said he was saddened by the news of his death and paid tribute to the work he did as an MP, saying he was very proactive and describing him as "genuine".

"Where do you start? Great bloke, hands on and educated. Mark Fisher was irreplaceable, you don't get MPs like that," he added.

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