Long-serving politician Lord Cormack dies aged 84

Sir Patrick Cormack served South Staffordshire until 2010 after being elected in 1997

Tributes have been paid to "unfailingly kind" Lord Cormack, the long-serving Conservative MP, who has died aged 84.

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby said Patrick Cormack "was a vivid character whose decades of public service were driven by his Christian service".

Sir Patrick was an MP for 40 years during which he was elected 10 times, most recently serving South Staffordshire from 1997 to 2010.

His roles also included shadow deputy leader for the House of Commons. After standing down as an MP in 2010, he served as a life peer in the House of Lords.

On X, Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle said Sir Patrick had been held in high regard in both houses at Westminster "as a great parliamentarian".

Lord Cormack, who became a Freeman of the City of London in 1980, was knighted in February 1995.

Mr Welby said: "As an MP for 40 years from 1970, he was a faithful and dedicated member for his constituency."

Later in the House of Lords, his "carefully timed and well-judged interventions spoke to his strong Christian faith guiding his values and prompting his interventions."

He accepted that Lord Cormack disagreed with many things done by bishops and archbishops.

"But [he] remained a friend, an adviser and someone to whom we could all turn, continued Mr Welby.

"He was unfailingly kind and courteous and his and his beloved wife Mary's home in Lincoln was a place of generous hospitality."

Mr Welby said his prayers were with Mary, sons Charles and Richard and their wider family.

Lord Cormack was held in high regard by in both houses in Westminster, said his friends and colleagues

The Bishop of Lincoln, the Right Reverend Stephen Conway, said he counted Lord Cormack as a "dear friend and unstinting supporter".

He added he would be greatly missed for his services to the arts and heritage in greater Lincolnshire and beyond.

Outside politics, Sir Patrick's earlier life included teaching history and posts including at Shropshire's Wrekin College.