Seafood industry leaders past and present have paid tribute to Grimsby MP Austin Mitchell, who has died aged 86.
Mr Mitchell represented the town for almost 40 years, serving from a 1977 by-election victory until 2015.
Following Tony Crosland into the seat, he was faced with the ramification of the Cod Wars and the further impact of European fisheries management, chairing the all party parliamentary group for the industry.
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And his diplomacy and championing was highly respected. He passed away in hospital in Leeds on Tuesday morning.
Steve Norton, former chief executive of Grimsby Fish Merchants’ Association, said: “It is very sad to hear. I remember Austin when he came to the constituency, taking over from the late Tony Crosland.
“I always believed he was a hard-working constituency MP who always championed the cause for Grimsby and tried to do the best for people wherever he could.
“He was labelled a rebel because at times he would defy the whip on various issues, unless he could get something from the government to benefit the constituency.
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“He was always around, always amenable and approachable. He had the charisma and persona, he could be talking to a minister of state or be sitting in a kitchen on the Willows or the Nunsthorpe discussing personal problems - with either he was equally as comfortable.”
Of the work in the fishing and seafood industry, Mr Norton said: “He was very highly regarded in Iceland, and by a long succession of Icelandic ambassadors, and he did genuinely try to champion the rights of fishermen.
“He worked hard on the campaign for compensation (for deep water fishermen) with Dolly Hardie, and more recently worked with me at the FMA in 2008 when the crash happened to ensure trading with Iceland could still happen. He ensured a genuinely special relationship remained so.
“He was a champion of seafood, always up there putting the case for Grimsby, and he used to love visiting the docks and fish market.”
Grimsby Fish Market chief executive, Martyn Boyers, described Austin Mitchell as a “great ambassador for Grimsby”.
He said: “He was a great supporter of Grimsby itself, and particularly the fishing industry, to the point where he famously changed his name to Austin Haddock in support of a cause all those years ago.
“He was the MP when I became chief executive, and we always had a good relationship. He invited me to Westminster to speak to committee meetings as chair of the All Party Fisheries Group on a few occasions, he was always interested, knowledgeable and quite the academic. He was very, very clever, very studious and thoughtful, we worked together many times.
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“He was a great ambassador for the fish market, and MP for so long that he was synonymous with Grimsby. He was gracious and kind, and I am very sorry for Linda and his family on a very sad day.”
Wynne Griffiths CBE, who led Young’s Seafood’s incredible growth as chief executive, and pioneered the recognition for the wider regional cluster, said: “I thought Austin Mitchell was a great local MP who did a lot for the constituency.
“I worked pretty closely with him and he was a great supporter of the fishing industry and latterly a great supporter of the Humber seafood cluster.
“He was a great help, facilitating the meeting up with ministers and putting forward the cause.
“He was also extremely highly regarded in Iceland for his work in allowing trade to continue after the crash in 2008 - when Gordon Brown’s government tried to invoke terrorism legislation to withhold money.
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“He represented the constituency extremely well and he represented the seafood industry extremely well. He was a regular visitor to our factories, taking photographs all the way, and actually opened Alveston House when we made it our centre for product development.
“Austin also played an important role in putting the film together we made supporting Grimsby when there was some pretty adverse publicity, together with Frank Flear and I, to extol the virtues of the place.
“He was a great character and a model of what a constituency MP should be - never chasing ministerial roles or patronage, he just wanted to represent Grimsby.
“I offer my condolences and best wishes to Linda and his family.”
Simon Dwyer, secretariat to Grimsby Fish Merchants' Association and the Grimsby Fishing Vessel Owners' Association, said: "Austin was well regarded by the Grimsby Fish Merchants' Association and the Grimsby Fishing Vessel Owners' Association.
"He was a massive stalwart and instigator of the world class Grimsby seafood processing and trading cluster. A remarkable man who at one time even changed his name to Austin Haddock to support our industry that thrives throughout the world.
"Challenging times need challenging people and Austin met those credentials each and every time for the people of Grimsby. Bless him and his family."
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