Roy Hattersley, Labour’s Former Deputy Leader, Dies Aged 93

Roy Hattersley, the former Deputy Leader of the Labour Party under Neil Kinnock, has died at the age of 93.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer acknowledged Lord Hattersley as “a giant of the Labour movement,” recognising his lengthy career.

First elected to Parliament in 1964 as the MP for Birmingham Sparkbrook, a constituency he represented for over three decades, Hattersley held a Cabinet position under James Callaghan in the 1970s. Following the 1983 general election, he became the party’s deputy leader, serving in opposition for nine years.

Sir Keir stated, “Through decades of service, including as deputy leader and a minister, he never lost his belief in a more equal Britain. My thoughts are with his wife Maggie and his family.”

Lord Hattersley’s ministerial career included a role as Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection from 1976. After Labour moved into opposition, he became a prominent voice against the party's move towards the left. As Deputy Leader, he advocated for multilateral disarmament, a market economy, and European Union membership.

Upon his departure from the House of Commons in 1997, he was granted a life peerage as Baron Hattersley of Sparkbrook. Deputy Labour Leader Lucy Powell commented that he “shaped the Labour Party and British politics,” calling him “a giant of our movement and of that generation of politicians.” Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle noted Lord Hattersley’s “life devoted to politics, public duty and writing.”