RIP John Prescott – and thanks for backing Brighton’s stadium

Brighton and Hove Albion paid tribute to the former Labour cabinet minister John Prescott who has died at the age of 86.

Lord Prescott was the government minister with responsibility for planning when it fell to him make the decision on whether the football club could build their stadium at Falmer.

The club said today (Thursday 21 November) that, rather than try to lobby the former Deputy Prime Minister aggressively, fans went on a charm offensive, sending flowers and valentine cards.

Although he approved the planning application, an appeal was lodged and it took a further 10 months for the final approval.

Former council leader Steve Bassam said that Lord Prescott was “a brilliant minister and deputy prime minister”.

Lord Bassam of Brighton, who served alongside John Prescott in the Blair government, said that he was “a visionary who was key to Labour’s success in government”.

Lord Bassam said: “His communities plan was inspired. He understood the need to build homes for young families and place-making.

“I was in his team for several years and was really impressed by his ability to master detail and retain an overall vision. He was remarkable.

“One of his great strengths was his ability to involve people and make them feel relevant. He could read a room better than most.

“On a local level he understood regeneration strategies and their value. Brighton and Hove will forever be grateful for his support for our football stadium.

“He understood the benefits to the city it would bring – and he wasn’t wrong.

“Witness Brighton and Hove Albion Football Club’s success and the impact it has had on the community it serves, bringing jobs and opportunities for all to our unique city by the sea.

“Without John’s backing, we would not have had the terrific club we have today. He truly understood the power of football.

“Canvassing with him in Hove was an experience as he was mobbed by enthusiastic football fans wanting to meet him.

“We won’t see his like again. He was a great character to work with and inspiring to know.”

Albion said: “The club was saddened to hear that John Prescott has passed away at the age of 86.

“As deputy prime minister, Lord Prescott is held in high esteem by supporters after he played a key role in Albion’s protracted battle to build the American Express Stadium.

“The club hadn’t had a permanent home of its own since the sale of the Goldstone Ground in 1997 and, after two years in exile at Gillingham, had been using Withdean since 1999.

“The stadium was opposed by some local residents, Falmer Parish Council, Lewes District Council and conservation groups due to its proximity to the South Downs, an area of outstanding natural beauty.

“As deputy prime minister, Prescott had the final decision and Albion fan Paul Samrah, one of those leading the fight for the new stadium, knew that he was unlikely to respond to aggressive lobbying from campaigners.

“Instead, fans sent Prescott flowers, and he was bombarded with valentine’s cards at the height of the campaign.”

Mr Samrah said: “We knew we had to be humorous and have a campaign that was focused. We knew the subtle approach of valentine cards, flowers and witty postcards was going to work. It was unlike any other campaign. The impact was enormous.”

The club said: “In October 2005, Prescott gave Falmer the green light. There was an immediate appeal from Lewes District Council.

“And by the time permission was finally granted after two public inquiries, the decision was made by Hazel Blears, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.

“But Prescott, a Hull City fan, will always be remembered by Albion fans as the politician who got behind the new stadium.

“At the height of the club’s campaign, he was warmly welcomed by fans when he attended Hull’s game at Withdean in December 2005 which Albion won 2-1.

“The son of a railway signalman, Prescott left school at 15 to work as a trainee chef and then as a steward on the Cunard Line before entering politics.

“He served as a Labour MP in Hull for four decades before moving into the House of Lords.”

One fan, who tweets as the Brighton Bard, posted: “RIP John Prescott.
He once punched a guy
With a strong left fist
And in the name of votes
Many a baby kissed.
But for us Seagulls
Like me and you
We’ll remember him as the guy
That helped our dreams come true.”

As deputy prime minister, he also announced the creation of the South Downs National Park at the Labour Party conference 25 years ago in September 1999.

At the same party conference, in Bournemouth, he was criticised after being chauffeured a few hundred yards from his hotel to the conference venue. He said that this was because his wife Pauline did not like her hair being blown about on the seafront.

He was dubbed Two Jags as it emerged that the former Environment Secretary, who played a key role in agreeing the Kyoto protocol to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, drove a Jaguar of his own as well as having the use of his ministerial limo.

Some years earlier, at another party conference, in Brighton in 1993, he made an impassioned speech that helped the leadership change the rules for parliamentary selections to one member one vote.

Many regard this as a key moment in the modernisation of the Labour Party, helping to prepare the ground for the landslide election victory in 1997.