Jack Dromey: funeral held in Westminster for Erdington MP

A funeral was held today (January 31) for former Birmingham Erdington MP Jack Dromey.

The former leading trade unionist, who was married to party grandee Harriet Harman, died aged 73 in his flat in his Birmingham constituency earlier this month.

Mr Dromey “remade history many times over” during his political career, former prime minister Gordon Brown told mourners at his funeral this morning (January 31).

Sir Tony Blair and Sir Keir Starmer were among those from both sides of the political spectrum who attended his funeral service at St Margaret’s Church in Parliament Square, Westminster.

Mr Brown, who served as prime minister from 2007 to 2010, paid tribute to Mr Dromey’s “irrepressible, almost boundless energy”.

He told mourners to remember his “infectious enthusiasm”, “fighting spirit” and “relentless optimism”.

Mr Brown went on: “From the start, Jack had a bigger mission, born of the intensity of his idealism and the courage of his convictions.

“He saw wrongs and wanted to right them, injustices and wanted to resolve them, and where there was unfairness, there Jack always was, fighting it.

“He was the ‘Jack of all campaigns’.

“‘Four quick points’ he’d say when you met him, and there were usually eight.

“And when he said ‘finally‘ that meant there were at least three more proposals to be acted on, as he ran a seemingly endless succession of landmark, ground-breaking, often life-changing campaigns, and made and remade history many times over.”

Sir Tony gave a Bible reading, while Mr Dromey’s daughter Amy Harman read an extract from her mother’s book A Woman’s Work.

Some had tears in their eyes as they entered the church just before noon, with cabinet ministers and Labour MPs in attendance.

The father-of-three, who had represented Birmingham Erdington since 2010, is understood to have died from natural causes.

Born in London in 1948, he had three children with Ms Harman, the former deputy Labour leader, who announced last month she will stand down as an MP after the next general election.

They married in 1982.

Mr Dromey joined the Labour frontbench as shadow housing minister in 2010 under then-leader Ed Miliband, who was also at the service.

Jess Phillips, Labour MP for Birmingham Yardley, said: “It was brilliant and funny and beautiful and a testimony to Jack.

“I just felt very much that Harriet and Jack will be very proud of their children who stood up very bravely and gave brilliant testimonies.”

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