Hundreds of mourners have paid their final respects to Brent Knoll county councillor Alan Ham at his funeral.
Alan, pictured, died on September 20th following a short illness.
Former Burnham-On-Sea MP David Heathcoat-Amory described at the service how Alan had been invaluable to him in getting things right.
“His judgement was always sound and balanced, his views and opinions always fair and wise,” said Mr Heathcoat-Amory.
“In my political office the secretary who dealt with my correspondence would often write at the top of a particularly taxing letter from a constituent that needed a reply ‘Ask Alan’ – and I always did! His legacy lives on in what he did for so many people.”
Commenting after the service, the Leader of Somerset County Council, Ken Maddock, said: “Alan was a predecessor of mine as leader of the Conservative group at the County Council so I knew him well. He served his local area with great distinction and had a great rapport with the rural community.”
“His experience served the county and the Conservative party well. He had an outstanding ability to assemble arguments and to explain them in a simple manner that everyone could understand. Always a gentleman, he will be greatly missed by all who knew him.”
Tiverton MP and former West Country MEP Neil Parish added: “He was a true gentleman – a quiet man, yet one hugely interested in public affairs. Relied on by many and admired by all who knew him, he was a ‘grass roots’ politician that everyone liked and respected – an accolade that can be accorded to very few.”
