Tessa Jowell , who has died at the age of 70 after being diagnosed with brain cancer last year, was by any standards a public representative of enormous integrity and commitment.
When it became clear that the former British cabinet minister only had a matter of months to live, she would have been fully entitled to withdraw from the spotlight and quietly spend her precious remaining time with family and friends.
Instead, she threw herself into the campaign for more investment on research into the causes of her condition and earned a standing ovation for her powerful final speech in the House of Lords last January.
She was a politician who made a difference throughout her career and the tributes which have been paid to her from both her colleagues and opponents were hugely moving.
