Family says former UK Treasury secretary and Labour Party stalwart Denis Healey dies at 98
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}FILE - In this Sunday, May 1, 1983 file photo, British Labour Party spokesman on Foreign Affairs Denis Healey addresses a Labour Party news conference in London. Decorated World War II military hero and former British treasury chief Dennis Healey has died on Saturday, Oct. 3, 2015 after a long career in British politics. He was 98. His family said Healey, a Labour Party stalwart and member of the House of Lords, died Saturday morning at his home in Sussex after a brief illness. Healey was a towering figure on Britain’s political scene for several decades, known for his familiar bushy eyebrows, his forthright demeanor, and his wide-ranging interests, which included photography and the opera. (AP Photo/Joseph Schaber, file) (The Associated Press)
The family of Denis Healey says the longtime Labour Party figure and former Treasury secretary has died after a brief illness. He was 98.
His family said in an email that Healey died Saturday morning at his home in Sussex.
He led the treasury from 1974 until 1979 and was made the Labour Party's deputy leader in 1980.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Labour's new leader, Jeremy Corbyn, praised Healey as a "Labour giant whose record of service to party and country stands as his testament."
Current Treasury chief George Osborne, from the rival Conservative Party, also praised Healey as a major figure in the Labour Party movement.