John Prescott was a former trade union activist who served as Prime Minister Tony Blair’s deputy for a decade as one of the best-known figures of the New Labour era.Ian Forsyth/Getty Images

Former UK Deputy PM John Prescott dead at 86 – POLITICO

by · POLITICO

Britain’s longest-serving Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott died aged 86, his family announced Thursday morning.

Prescott was a former trade union activist who served at Prime Minister Tony Blair’s side as one of the best-known figures of the New Labour era.

Prescott represented Hull East as an MP for 40 years and served as deputy PM to Blair for a decade from 1997 to 2007, focused on issues around climate, transport, regional development — and trying to keep the peace between Blair and Chancellor Gordon Brown.