TRIBUTES have been paid to a former Labour member of Kent County Council, Len Bishop, who has died at the age of 65.

Mr Bishop, who lived at Aylesford, near Maidstone, was first elected to the county council in 1993, when Labour took control of KCC in partnership with the Liberal Democrats for the first time. He represented the Maidstone South East division and stood down in 2001.

Before becoming a county councillor, he had been a member of Thanet District Council for five years between 1974 and 1979 and was the Labour group leader. As a member of the county council, he was joint chairman of KCC’s social services committee.

He stood for Parliament four times, as the Labour candidate for Dover and Deal at the two elections in 1974 and for what was then the Isle of Thanet constituency in 1966 and 1970.

He acted as the agent for the current MP for Chatham and Aylesford, Jonathan Shaw, in 1997, helping to mastermind the party’s local election campaign. The MP said: “Len was the benchmark of the good socialist. He was very bright and principled. He was a great mentor to me."

Mr Bishop leaves a widow, Merle, a daughter Nicola, and two grand-children.