Former Labour minister Frank Field dies aged 81 after cancer battle

Get Expert Analysis On Westminster Straight To Your Inbox - Sign Up Now!

"Receive Our Complimentary Westminster Email"

The family of Frank Field, a former Labour minister and crossbench peer, has announced that he has passed away at the age of 81.

Lord Field received a diagnosis of incurable cancer.

The family of Lord Field of Birkenhead shared a message through his Parliamentary office announcing that he has passed away due to an illness. Lord Field, who was also known as the Rt Hon Lord Field of Birkenhead, CH, was 81 years old.

During the span of 1969 to 1979, Frank held the position of director at the Child Poverty Action Group. Following this, from the year 1979 until 2019, he served as the Member of Parliament for Birkenhead.

In the past, he worked as a Minister responsible for reforming the welfare system and he was in charge of an independent examination of poverty and how it affects people's lives. Additionally, he oversaw the House of Commons' committees related to work and pensions and was the chairperson for the Joint Committee that developed the draft version of a law aimed at combating modern slavery.

Frank became a member of the House of Lords in 2020 with the title of the Rt Hon the Lord Field of Birkenhead. He was awarded the honorary title of Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour (CH) in the 2022 New Year Honours. He is still actively involved in managing the boards of Cool Earth, Feeding Britain, and the Frank Field Education Trust.

Frank has two brothers that are still alive.

People from all political backgrounds will feel sorrowful for his loss. However, the ones who had the chance to experience his sense of humor and companionship will miss him greatly.

He passed away after two and a half years of announcing his terminal illness and spending time in a hospice. During that period, he endorsed a bill for assisted dying which was under discussion in the House of Lords. Regrettably, he was too unwell to join the conversation.

Lord Field served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Birkenhead representing the Labour Party for nearly four decades. However, he decided to relinquish his affiliation with the party due to the issue of antisemitism that arose during Jeremy Corbyn's time as leader. Subsequently, he created his political party called the Birkenhead Social Justice Party. Unfortunately, he was not successful in the general election of 2019 and lost his seat in parliament.

In October 2020, Lord Field was appointed to the upper chamber after securing 10 consecutive election victories as the representative for Birkenhead between 1979 and 2019.

In 1997, he worked as a minister of welfare reform in the first government led by Tony Blair. Later, he was selected to lead the work and pensions select committee.

The seasoned politician was honored by being inducted as a part of the Order of the Companions of Honour during the New Year Honours ceremony in 2022. The politician expressed their gratitude for the recognition, calling it an extraordinary honor.

Lord Field was honored for his contributions to public and political work after dedicating his career to various causes such as advocating for pension reform, eliminating child poverty, and fighting against modern slavery.

He worked as a member of the management of the non-profit organizations Cool Earth and Feeding Britain, in addition to being involved with the Frank Field Education Trust.

Last year, there was a touching moment in the House of Lords when Lord Field entered the chamber in a wheelchair. He expressed his loyalty to the King during this moment.

As he left, the ex-minister acknowledged his peers and they responded with a show of vocal affirmation. Prior to this, he had expressed his resolve to pledge allegiance to the new monarch as is customary for all members of the House of Lords.

Many people from the Labour Party gave their respects to Lord Field. Harriet Harman, a former Labour deputy leader, shared that Frank strongly believed that poverty should never be tolerated and could be eliminated. He was an intelligent, determined, and kind person who advocated for this cause for many years. May he rest in peace.

The ex-Labour minister, Dame Angela Eagle, expressed her sorrow over the news and shared that the deceased had always been very supportive of her as a parliamentary colleague. Frank was known for his overflowing ideas on how to improve society and he was a great advocate for his constituents in Birkenhead. His passing is a great loss.