Former council leader Lord Hanningfield dies

Tributes have been paid to former Essex County Council leader Lord Hanningfield, who has died aged 84.

The peer, from West Hanningfield in Essex, led the county council from 1998 to 1999 and again for a decade until his resignation in 2010.

Lord Hanningfield was jailed for parliamentary expenses fraud after falsely claiming £28,000 - and served nine weeks of a nine-month sentence.

His family said he was "utterly committed to the people and communities of Essex" and would be "sadly missed".

Lord Hanningfield, born Paul White, was born in Chelmsford on 16 September 1940.

His family said he died on 20 October.

He was first elected to the county council in 1970 and was granted a peerage in 1998 for services to local government.

In a statement, his family said: "Lord Hanningfield, Paul, was a much-loved brother, brother-in-law and uncle.

"He was passionate about helping others and utterly committed to the people and communities of Essex.

"He championed Essex both locally and nationally, including during his time in the House of Lords."

His family said that under his leadership, the council undertook "ground-breaking initiatives to support Essex", which they said included a scheme to reopen post offices and creating the Bank of Essex to support local businesses.

"He was a consequently a figure with drive, determination and single mindedness that ran through everything that he did," his family said.

Lord Hanningfield was a Conservative peer until 2010 and sat as a non-affiliated peer until his death.

A second investigation was opened into his expenses claims while he was at Essex County Council - but was dismissed in 2012.

He held a number of senior positions in local government including Leader of the Association of County Councils (1995-97) and Chair of the Council of Local Education Authorities (1990-1992).

He also helped to create the Local Government Association (LGA) where he served as Deputy Chair between1997 and 2001.

BBC Political Editor for the East of England, Andrew Sinclair, says: "Baron Hanningfield was probably one of the last powerful shire Tories.

"A well-connected politician, he dominated local government and the politics of Essex for many years. A man who, depending on your point of view, could inspire tremendous loyalty or fear among those who worked with him.

"There are politicians in senior positions in Essex today who probably owe their positions to his patronage, there are others who will say he ruined their careers.

"He was one of the first council leaders to foresee the financial challenges which would face local authorities. His plans for outsourcing services and a £5.4bn deal with IBM was deeply controversial at the time but similar ideas would be copied by every other council a few years later as austerity began to bite.

"His defence of rural communities, his plans for the council to take over the running of rural post offices, played to his belief that local authorities could be a force for good.

"But a formidable career was brought crashing down by his obsession with fiddling expenses: fraudulent train fares, hotel stays in London when he had actually gone home for the night or, on one occasion, was on a plane to India.

"Even when he was released from prison he still made headlines for travelling to Westminster to 'clock in' to the House of Lords, only to return home a short while later to claim his £300 daily allowance. His actions did nothing to repair the image of politicians following the expenses scandal.

"He was a rare visionary in local government who could have played an even bigger role in reshaping it - but for many people he’ll always be remembered for his love of expenses."

Jill Reeves, chairman of Essex County Council, said: "It was with sadness that Essex County Council learnt of the death of Lord Hanningfield.

"Lord Hanningfield was first elected to the County Council in 1970, and served as Chairman from 1989 to 1992.

"He was Leader of the Council from 1998 to 1999, and from 2000 until his resignation in 2010.

"He was also Leader of the Conservative Group on the Local Government Association.

"Our thoughts and sympathies are with his family and friends at this time."

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