Lewis Rose will be a hard act to follow

THE mark of any good council leader, we would say, is the respect he has for the electorate he serves. And Lewis Rose always had his ward members’ best interests at heart.

Covering his council meetings, of which there have been so many over the years, has been a delight.

You’d watch the usual political sparring, the debates between members with opposing perspectives, and then you’d wait until the debate had all but dried up. And then Lewis would speak, and usually shut it all down straight away.

And, as a reporter, despite the fact your hand had become exhausted from taking down all the to-ing and fro-ing of a typically exhaustive discussion, the moment Lewis chimed in you’d always be ready to record every dot and comma.

Because you knew that, almost without exception, he’d be ready to deal a hammer blow. You knew that Lewis had been sitting and listening attentively, but holding back his own opinion, ready to articulate it in a way that would stop the discussion in its tracks.

He had a knack for spotting details in a report that others didn’t. And he had an unflinching ability to uncover key points that others might not have noticed.

He was an astute, creative, intelligent and committed councillor for all the years he served local politics. He deserved all the countless seats he won and he didn’t deserve to pass away at the age of 74. He had much more to give.

The News Telegraph will miss the entertainment he gave at all the meetings we attended; the way he lightened the mood with his funny quips, and the willingness he always showed to respond to the challenges and confrontations we presented him with, on any given topic.

He was a politician of the old school. And he will be a hard act to follow.