"A man who touched countless lives": tribute to Lord Haselhurst – by Kemi Badenoch
Lord Haselhurst: 23 June 1937 – 1 June 2026 | Image courtesy of UK Parliament
4 min read
MP, peer and passionate cricket enthusiast, for over a half a century in public life Alan Haselhurst put service above status. Fair, patient and unflappable, he was respected across party lines
Some politicians measure out their careers in the offices they hold. Alan Haselhurst, who passed away last week at the age of 88, measured his differently.
For over half a century in public life, he embodied a tradition that is becoming increasingly rare: the parliamentarian who cared more about service than advancement, more about institutions than profile, and more about the people he represented than the titles he accumulated. He never sat in Cabinet and never reached the front bench, yet few who served with him doubted the contribution he made to Parliament or to the constituency he loved.
He first entered the Commons in 1970 for Middleton and Prestwich, lost his seat in 1974, and returned in 1977 as the Member for Saffron Walden, in a by-election following the death of Peter Kirk. He remained there for the next 40 years. By the time he retired in 2017, he had become part of the fabric of both the constituency and the House itself.
He was very supportive of me after I took over as the successor for his seat. He had a great institutional memory of political events both local and national that had taken place over the 40 years and had an amusing anecdote for every situation. In the years since, I have met countless people whose lives he touched. What always struck me was not simply the number, but the detail. Constituents remembered letters, conversations, interventions and acts of kindness that had taken place decades earlier. Alan knew the constituency, now known as North West Essex, exceptionally well and treated representing it not as a duty to be discharged, but as a responsibility to be honoured.
He was assisted by his wife Angela who, as his constituency manager and his partner in the work, was a steady presence beside him throughout his public life. Many constituents who remember Alan’s help will also remember Angela’s kindness, efficiency, and quiet determination to get things done. She helped make the office work, helped people feel heard, and shared in the unglamorous vocation that is constituency service.
Those who knew him best often say that to understand Alan properly, you had to see him at the cricket
In Parliament Alan championed opportunities for young people, arguing for better youth services and supporting organisations that helped the next generation thrive. Long before it became fashionable, he understood that public service meant investing in those who would come after us.
His years as deputy speaker revealed perhaps his greatest strengths. He possessed an encyclopaedic understanding of parliamentary procedure, but wore his expertise lightly. Fair, patient and unflappable, he earned respect across party lines. He twice came close to becoming Speaker of the House of Commons, yet seemed to bear those disappointments with characteristic grace. For Alan, service mattered more than status.
That attitude defined much of his life. He belonged to a generation that viewed Parliament not as a platform for self-expression, but as a national institution worthy of stewardship. Whether through his work in the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, his efforts to improve the workings of the House, or his devotion to constituency service, he strengthened the institutions he served and asked for little recognition in return.
Away from politics there was cricket, perhaps his greatest passion. He helped found the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Cricket, served on the Essex County Cricket Club committee and somehow found time to write seven novels about a fictional Essex cricket club. Those who knew him best often say that to understand Alan properly, you had to see him at the cricket. It was there that his warmth, humour and enthusiasm were most fully on display.
In an age that often rewards noise and self-promotion, Alan represented something quieter and, perhaps for that reason, more enduring. He showed that a political life can be judged not only by the offices held, but by the trust earned, the institutions strengthened and the people helped along the way.
He was a good and kind man, respected across both Houses, devoted to his family and admired by colleagues of every political persuasion. My thoughts are with Angela, his children David, Mark, and Emma, and his grandchildren. He leaves behind a constituency, a Parliament and a Commonwealth parliamentary family that are all better for his service.
Kemi Badenoch is Conservative MP for North West Essex and leader of the opposition
