John Prescott, Britain’s former Deputy Prime Minister, has died at the age of 86. His family confirmed the news on Thursday, stating he passed away “peacefully” in a care home surrounded by loved ones and the jazz music of Marian Montgomery.
Prescott, who served as the Member of Parliament for Hull in northern England for 40 years, was a former merchant seaman and a staunch trade union advocate.
In a statement released by his wife Pauline and their two sons, they shared:
“We are deeply saddened to inform you that our beloved husband, father, and grandfather, John Prescott, passed away yesterday (Wednesday) at the age of 86.”
Prescott played a pivotal role in reshaping the Labour Party alongside former Prime Minister Tony Blair. Blair, who appointed Prescott as his deputy to bridge the divide between Labour’s traditional working-class supporters and its modernizing faction, expressed his sorrow at the loss.
“There was no one quite like him in British politics,” Blair told BBC Radio.
Current Labour leader and Prime Minister Keir Starmer praised Prescott as “a true giant of the Labour movement,” adding:
“He was a staunch defender of working people and a proud trade unionist. During a decade as deputy prime minister, he was one of the key architects of a Labour government that transformed the lives