Lord Taylor dies after mobility scooter crash

Lord Taylor apologised to the House of Lords for his role in a newspaper sting

A Labour peer has died after being seriously injured when his mobility scooter collided with a van outside Parliament during rush hour.

Lord Taylor of Blackburn, 87, was taken to a south London hospital after the crash on Wednesday last week.

He was the Labour leader of Blackburn Council in the 1970s before being made a life peer in May 1978 and becoming a businessman.

Labour's Lords leader Baroness Smith said the peer would be sadly missed.

"Tom Taylor had a lifelong commitment to the Labour Party, through both local government and Parliament, and was held in high regard and with great affection by his party colleagues," she said.

"Tom was a committed member of the House of Lords right through to the tragic circumstances which led to his death. We in the Labour peers group are very sad and will miss him dearly."

Lord Taylor was admitted to hospital following the incident with a van last Wednesday. His injuries were initially not thought to be life-threatening.

The driver stopped at the scene but was not arrested, police said at the time.

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Thomas Taylor became a member of Blackburn Town Council in 1954 and was its leader from 1972-76.

In 2009 Lord Taylor was suspended from the Lords for six months after allegedly offering to help a business secure favourable changes in legislation for a fee in a newspaper sting operation. It was the first time in 350 years that a peer had been banned in this way.

He and three other peers were caught speaking to undercover journalists posing as lobbyists and appeared willing to amend a bill in return for cash.