Tributes pour in for true blue ex-Tory MP Warren Hawksley

Mr Hawksley was the MP for Halesowen and Stourbridge from 1992-97, having also represented Wrekin from 1979-87.

He was a Maastricht Rebel, and one of only a small number of Tories not to have voted for any part of the treaty.

Mr Hawksley was also a keen shooter and was known for his forthright views, particularly on law and order, having spent years calling for the reintroduction of corporal punishment for young offenders.

A true blue Tory, he was also renowned for his controversial views on immigration, and once called for a complete ban on it for five years.

But he also had a caring side, and became a director at the Staffordshire-based substance abuse charity Re-Solv in 1998.

Tributes have poured in for Mr Hawksley, who has been living in France with his family in recent years.

Mike Wood, the Conservative MP for Dudley South, campaigned for Mr Hawksley before the 1992 and 1997 elections.

He said: "I got to know him beyond his slightly full on public persona, and will remember him as a very kind and generous man, who was always very supportive."

Stone's Tory MP Sir Bill Cash, said of his fellow Masstricht rebel: "I was very friendly with Warren. He was a great Eurosceptic, and I will always remember how he successfully fought what was at the time the very marginal swing seat of Wrekin, against all the odds.

"He will be sadly missed and I pass on my condolences to his wife and family."

Mr Hawksley's daughter, Emma Roberts, said: "We love and miss him so much. We are so proud of his political achievements."

Halesowen and Rowley Regis MP James Morris, added: “I would like to express my condolences to the family of Warren Hawksley who has sadly passed away.

"He served as Halesowen’s MP for five years and is still fondly remembered by many for the way he represented the area, and his strong opinions which he spent many years campaigning for.”

During his time in Parliament, Oswestry-born Mr Hawksley served on the Home Affairs Select Committee.

His first attempt at becoming an MP saw him come second to Labour's Renee Short in Wolverhampton North East in 1974.

He served as a governor of Wolverhampton Polytechnic in the 1970s.

Mr Hawksley is survived by his wife Kathleen and daughters.