True Blue who showed his colours by helping others

WITH almost 40 years’ experience in Parliament, Sir David Amess was one of the Commons’ longest-serving MPs.

- Martyn Brown

A Conservative and a long-term Eurosceptic, he was first elected in Margaret Thatcher’s 1983 landslide.

Raised as a Roman Catholic, he was known politically as a social conservative and as a prominent campaigner against abortion and on animal welfare issues.

Unsurprisingly the Brexiteer voted Leave in the 2016 referendum.

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He was also known for his championing of his constituency town Southend, in Essex, including a long-running campaign to win it city status.

The married father-of-five also took some less traditional Conservative positions – including campaigning against fox-hunting.

An animal lover, the MP for Southend West was regularly pictured posing with dogs and called for a ban on animal testing last month.

Despite his true-blue credentials he was popular across the political divide, known also as a true family man and a hard-working constituency MP.