Prime Minister pays tribute to Senator Kennedy (August 28, 2009)
The Prime Minister has sent his condolences to the family of Senator Edward Kennedy, who has died at the age of 77 after battling a brain tumour.
Gordon Brown said the US politician was the “Senator of Senators” and he was proud to have counted him as a friend.
Senator Kennedy, the brother of former President John F Kennedy, was awarded an honourary knighthood by the Queen earlier this year for his services to the US-UK relationship and to Northern Ireland.
The Prime Minister said:
“Senator Edward Kennedy will be mourned not just in America but in every continent. He is admired around the world as the Senator of Senators. He led the world in championing children’s education and health care, and believed that every single child should have the chance to realise their potential to the full. Even facing illness and death he never stopped fighting for the causes which were his life’s work.
“I am proud to have counted him as a friend and proud that the United Kingdom recognised his service earlier this year with the award of an honorary knighthood. My thoughts and those of Sarah are with his remarkable and loving wife Vicki and his great family.”
Read the Prime Minister's tribute to Senator Kennedy in the Boston Globe.
The Foreign Secretary
Foreign Secretary David Miliband has also expressed sadness at the news of Senator Edward Kennedy's death.
He said:
'I was very sorry to hear of the death of Senator Edward Kennedy. All tributes to him will rightfully recognise the outstanding contribution he made to American life. It is also important to recognise his services to the UK.
His support for the Kennedy Memorial Trust (named after his late brother) will be of lasting benefit, as I have good reason to know having spent a year in America as a Kennedy Scholar. Senator Kennedy's values helped shape American life in the 20th century and remain vitally important today.'
Read the Foreign Secretary's blog post in which he pays tribute to Senator Kennedy.
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Shaun Woodward, has said that he was ‘deeply saddened’ to hear of the death of Senator Kennedy.
Mr Woodward said:
“Ted Kennedy was a true and constant friend of the peace process in Northern Ireland whose huge influence in engaging the United States in that process cannot be overestimated.
In every sense he was an immense figure whose part in transforming Northern Ireland will be a lasting memorial.
My thoughts are with the Kennedy family today”.
Read more
- Senator Kennedy to be knighted
-
Prime Minister Gordon Brown's speech at the JFK Library in April 2008
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