TRIBUTES have been paid to Bradford-born, former Labour MP Alice Mahon who has died at the age of 85.
Born in Buttershaw, Bradford, Ms Mahon attended a grammar school in Halifax, and worked in the National Health Service as a nursing auxiliary for ten years.
In 1979, she gained a BA in Social Policy from the University of Bradford and taught Trade Union Studies at Bradford College from 1980 to 1987. Meanwhile, she was a councillor on Calderdale Council.
Ms Mahon, an outspoken left winger, represented Halifax for 18 years from 1987 to 2005.
In a statement, the town’s current MP Holly Lynch said: “Alice Mahon always had a track record of fighting tirelessly for Halifax, and was much loved for it.
“She was a proud trade unionist and achieved a great deal both inside and outside of Parliament.
“My thoughts are very much with her family as I know she will be dearly missed as a mother and grandmother.”
During her time in Parliament, Ms Mahon was a fierce critic of the then leader and prime minister, Sir Tony Blair, and was bitterly opposed to the war in Iraq.
After standing down at the 2005 general election, she quit the party altogether in 2009 in protest at the tactics of Sir Tony’s successor, Gordon Brown.
Her fellow left winger and former party leader Jeremy Corbyn tweeted: “An utterly brilliant working-class campaigner, Alice was one of one of my best comrades in Parliament. I will miss her terribly.”
Current party leader Sir Keir Starmer said: “Alice Mahon was a tireless champion for the people of Halifax. My thoughts are with her friends and family.”
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