Labour Brexiteer Frank Field dies aged 81 after battle with cancer, family confirms
The former Labour MP, who spoke movingly about his battle with terminal cancer last year, has died.
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MPs from all sides came together today to pay tribute to Labour MP and Peer Frank Field, who passed away aged 81 after a lengthy battle with cancer.
Lord Field, who is survived by his two brothers, served as the MP for Birkenhead for 40 years, from 1979 before departing the Commons in 2019.
A man on the left of the Labour Party for most of his life, he received widespread plaudits in 2018 when he quit the party over the antisemitism that had grown under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership, warning his former colleagues that it was “increasingly seen as a racist party”.
Lord Field’s death sparked sincere tributes from all sides of the Commons, including from Brexiteers who paid tribute to his dedicated support in trying to honour the result of the 2016 referendum result.
In 2018 Frank Field lost a confidence vote in his local branch after siding with Theresa May’s government to pass the Brexit deal and get Brexit done, joining just three other Labour MPs in voting against joining a Customs Union.
Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer led tributes, with the Labour leader saying: "Frank was principled, courageous and independent-minded".
“He cared about the people he served, thought deeply about the issues he championed, and worked entirely for the good of the people of Birkenhead as their MP for 40 years. His honour and integrity were well known and admired.”
Mr Sunak said Lord Field had been a “decent, moral, and thoughtful man”.
“He was a great parliamentarian - he made our politics better and raised the level of national debate in this country.”
In a sign of his widespread love and popularity, tributes also came from Harriet Harman, Wes Streeting, Theresa May, Iain Duncan-Smith, Priti Patel, Layla Moran, Caroline Lucas, and dozens of MPs from all political factions.
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Lord Field’s career saw him promoted to the Labour front bench in 1980 as Michael Foot’s shadow education secretary, and Neil Kinnock’s health spokesman in 1983.
Surprisingly for a long-standing man of of the left, Frank Field famously developed a surprise friendship with Margaret Thatcher, giving her advice and comfort during her final years in No. 10.
Two nights before the Tory Party leadership election in November 1990, Lord Field visited ‘Mrs T’ in Downing Street to advise her that her time was drawing to end, later describing himself as “sickened” at the way Tory MPs had booted her out.
Writing in the Mail in 2009, Lord Field said: “I recalled all the times she had delivered for me. When I saw how some of her own Conservative MPs hated her and called her ‘that woman’ it sickened me”.
Speaking to the Guardian about his long illness last year he said: “It’s a strange experience taking so long to die. But there we are. It’s affected my mouth, as you can see”.
“It began about 10 years ago, when I was told I had prostate cancer. The hospital said, we must keep a watching brief on this. And they didn’t. It spread everywhere.”
Despite his protracted cancer battle, he still found the energy to use his own health struggles to campaign for fellow people in pain.
In 2021 he came out in favour of assisted dying, a campaign that is now growing at pace.
He revealed: “I changed my mind on assisted dying when an MP friend was dying of cancer and wanted to die early, before the full horror effects set in, but was denied this opportunity”.
In a statement, his family said that Lord Field “will mourned by admirers across politics but above all he will be greatly missed by those lucky enough to have enjoyed his laughter and friendship”