Former British Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott dies at the age of 86

LONDON (AP) — British politician John Prescott, a former sailor who rose to the post of deputy prime minister, has died at the age of 86.

Prescott’s family announced his death Thursday. They said the politician, who suffered from Alzheimer’s disease, died peacefully in a nursing home on Wednesday with his loved ones around him.

The family said Prescott “spent his life trying to improve the lives of others, fighting for social justice and protecting the environment.”

For a decade, Prescott brought courage, humor and working-class originality to the government of the young and flamboyant Tony Blair, who became prime minister in 1997.

“He was one of the most talented people I have ever encountered in politics, one of the most determined, the most loyal and certainly the most extraordinary people,” Blair said.

An amateur boxer in his youth, Prescott was a combative politician who memorably punched a man who threw an egg at him during the 2001 general election.

The turmoil briefly looked like it could damage the party and Prescott’s career. But Blair’s response – “John is John” – cemented his public status.

Prescott entered politics through the union movement; This once common path became less frequent as Blair renamed the left-leaning party “New Labour” and shifted its politics towards the centre.

He was a proud figure of the working class in a country where there are still very few people with this background at the top of politics. He unapologetically loved the finer things in life and was nicknamed “The Two Jags” by the press for owning two luxury Jaguar cars.

The egg thrower’s punching incident earned him another nickname: “Two Punches”

Prescott served as Blair’s deputy from 1997 to 2007. One of his proudest achievements was working with then-US Vice President Al Gore on the landmark Kyoto Protocol climate change agreement in 1997.

Gore said he had “never worked with anyone on my side or his side of politics like John Prescott.”

“He fought like hell to negotiate the Kyoto Protocol and has been a staunch advocate of climate action for decades. I am forever grateful to John for his commitment to solving the climate crisis, and I will miss him as a dear friend,” Gore said in a statement.

Prescott represented his hometown of Hull in the north of England for four decades. After Labor lost power in 2010, he became a member of the House of Lords, the unelected upper house of Parliament.

Former Labor Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Prescott was a true working-class hero.

“He wanted good things in life, not just for himself, but for everyone,” Brown said. “And it showed that Britain can be a country where you can fulfill your potential if you work hard.”

He is survived by his wife Pauline and sons Johnathan and David.