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Lord Menzies Campbell, former leader of the Liberal Democrats, has died at the age of 84, the party said.
His family said he died peacefully at the Kyn Hurlingham care facility in London after a period of respite care, adding that one of his final days was spent watching the Lib Dem party conference.
Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey described Lord Campbell – known as Ming – as a “dedicated public servant, a tireless champion for Fife, St Andrews and the UK, and a true Liberal giant”.
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Lord Campbell was a ‘true Liberal giant’, Sir Ed Davey said (Getty)
Meanwhile, his grandson Gregor Grant-Suttie said: “Ming achieved a lot through his life, across sport, law and politics. But the myriad of accolades and awards he collected in his professional life paled in comparison to his achievements as a husband, father figure, grandfather and friend.”
Lord Campbell was first elected to the Commons in 1987, winning the North East Fife constituency – a seat he held until he retired in 2015.
A renowned critic of the Iraq war, he became a leading Lib Dem voice on both foreign affairs and defence, acting as the party’s spokesperson on foreign affairs for 14 years.
The politician later served as leader of the party from March 2006 until October 2007.
Before becoming an MP, Lord Campbell was an Olympic sprinter, holding the UK 100m record from 1967 to 1974.
“He was a rare breed of Scotsman whose contribution and ideas spanned so much further than his home country’s borders; his level of thinking around issues that were international, particularly around defence, gave Scotland the ability to be extremely proud of one of their own, whose ideas were so much larger than narrowly focused UK politics”, Mr Grant-Suttie added.
“He was of a generation where hard work and improving oneself through education were prioritised, while the modern-day notion of relative standards versus others was alien to him – in every step of his life he only ever compared himself against his own exceptionally high standards.”
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Nick Clegg succeeded Lord Campbell as leader of the party (Getty)
Former Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg – who succeeded Lord Campbell as leader of the party – paid tribute to his predecessor, saying he was “unfailingly generous with his time and advice”.
“His deep interest in foreign affairs was especially impactful – and even when he disagreed with me, he did so with his trademark courtesy and wit. I will miss him greatly.”
He added: “When I saw him earlier this month he was physically frail but just as full of political gossip, curiosity and insight as always – and reminiscing too about his beloved Elspeth, to whom he was utterly devoted, and their happy life together.
“Ming was a liberal – a Scottish liberal – to his core.”
Sir Ed said: “With a parliamentary career spanning five decades, Ming Campbell was a dedicated public servant, a tireless champion for Fife, St Andrews and the UK, and a true Liberal giant.
“He was the Liberal Democrat spokesperson on foreign affairs when the world changed on 9/11, and his principled leadership opposing the Iraq War was a mark of his morality, courage and wisdom. He spoke up for what was right, even when it was hard.”
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Menzies Campbell was leader of the Liberal Democrats from March 2006 until October 2007 (Getty)
Sir Ed said he “benefited greatly from Ming’s advice and guidance over the many years we worked closely together”, adding that he was “an incredibly warm and caring friend and colleague, with such generosity and humour.”
“Ming was always great company – whether talking about sport with the authority of a captain of Britain’s athletics team and a British 100m record-holder, or asking about you and your family, when he would always pass on kind thoughts from his wife, Elspeth – his rock”, he added.
“All of us in the Liberal Democrat family and beyond will miss him terribly. Our thoughts are with all who loved him.”