London, Nov 21 (AP) British politician John Prescott, a former merchant seaman who rose to the post of deputy prime minister, has died at age 86. Prescott's family announced his death on Thursday. They said the politician, who had been suffering from Alzheimer's disease, died peacefully in a care home on Wednesday with his loved ones around him.
The family said Prescott had "spent his life trying to improve the lives of others, fighting for social justice and protecting the environment." For a decade, Prescott brought grit, humour and working-class authenticity to the government of the young, polished Tony Blair, who became prime minister in 1997. "He was one of the most talented people I ever encountered in politics, one of the most committed and loyal, and definitely the most unusual,” Blair said.
An amateur boxer in his youth, Prescott was a pugnacious politician who memorably punched a man who threw an egg at him during the 2001 general election. The uproar briefly looked like it might harm the party, and Prescott's career. But Blair's response -– “John is John” -– cemented his folksy status.
Prescott entered politics through the trade union movement — a once-common route that became less frequent after Blair rebranded the left-leaning party “New Labour” and shifted its politics toward the center. He was a proud working-class figure in a country that still has few from that background at the top of politics. He unapologetically liked the finer things in li.
