Cecil Parkinson dead: Former Thatcher cabinet minister dies of cancer aged 84

The Thatcherite was twice Chairman of the Conservative Party and made a life peer in 1992

File photo from July 1988 of the then-Energy Secretary Cecil Parkinson who has died, his family announced (PA)

The former British Conservative politician and cabinet minister Cecil Parkinson has died of cancer aged 84.

Lord Parkinson's family announced his death on Monday afternoon, saying he passed away after a "long" bout of cancer.

The Tory grandee served in a succession of senior roles in the governments of Margaret Thatcher, and entered the House of Lords as a life peer in 1992 until his retirement in September 2015.

In a statement, his family said: "We shall miss him enormously. As a family, we should like to pay tribute to him as a beloved husband to Ann and brother to Norma, and a supportive and loving father to Mary, Emma and Joanna and grandfather to their children.

"We also salute his extraordinary commitment to British public life as a member of parliament, cabinet minister and peer - together with a distinguished career in business."

Lord Parkinson was twice the Conservative Party chairman, but his career was almost destroyed by the revelation that he had an affair with his secretary Sara Keays, who had his child.

He was later restored to the front benches as Energy Secretary, before resigning when John Major became Prime Minister.