Tributes paid to former Northern Ireland office minister Paul Goggins

Former Northern Ireland Office minister Paul Goggins, who has died aged 60 from a brain haemorrhage, was a politician of “great integrity and wisdom”, Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore has said. The popular Labour MP from Manchester collapsed on December 30th while out jogging with his son.

British prime minister David Cameron said yesterday: “He was a kind, brilliant man who believed profoundly in public service. He cared deeply about the welfare of children and the importance of social work.”

Mr Goggins served in the Northern Ireland Office as a minister of state in charge of justice and security issues from 2007 to 2010. Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson said he had been “a genuine friend of Northern Ireland and his work contributed to achieving the settlement secured”.