Byers resignation: Little sympathy from constituents

North Tyneside, which has watched Stephen Byers rise from deputy council leader to local MP before gaining ministerial status, was offering scant comfort yesterday.

The views on the streets was that Mr Byers, whose political career began as ward councillor for Howdon in 1980 while he lectured in law at the former Newcastle Polytechnic, had been afforded enough second chances. "Resigning is the best thing Stephen Byers could have done and that is the feeling of the majority of people in this area," said Sheila Moffat, 63, a constituent.

Even Andrew Simpson, a 29-year-old operations technician from Wallsend who retains gratitude for the way Councillor Byers helped to rehouse his father and mother, was satisfied that he "had to resign after everything that has been said and done".

Six years of open support for looser links between Labour and the unions has hardly endeared Mr Byers to traditionalists. Retired miner and Labour supporter Joe Harrison, 67, of North Shields said: "He is a good constituency MP but a bloody bad minister."

Politically, this once-safe, Old Labour territory has been delivering uncertainties for New Labour's Mr Byers since a new, young Conservative mayor was elected three weeks ago. Stephen Morgan, a 32-year-old former accountant, is claiming that "reckless" management by the previous Labour administration, including the minister's political allies, has left the council in a more precarious financial position than most because it had no cash in reserves.

With no good words to be found for Mr Byers from Mr Morgan's Tory-dominated cabinet, it was left to his constit-uency secretary and long-time agent Eddie Darke to speak up for the ex-minister. He said: "I've been Stephen's friend for a long time and I know how much he cares about building a fairer society and how hard he works to make that happen.

"Stephen has many friends in the North-east who know all he has done for the area. I'm sad he felt he needed to resign, but he is an excellent MP and will continue to work hard for the people of North Tyneside."

Chris Lennie, deputy genneral secretary of the Labour Party and northern region director, said Mr Byers had been hounded out.

But there was more muted sympathy from Alan Campbell, Labour MP for Tyne-mouth. "I'm saddened but not altogether surprised," he said.