Final farewell to council leader who died at Christmas
FUNERAL SERVICE FOR 57-YEAR-OLD WILL BE OPEN TO PUBLIC
THE funeral service for the late Tameside council leader Kieran Quinn is to be held on Monday, January 22.
Mourners will gather at St Anne’s RC Church, Burlington Street, Ashton-under-Lyne, at 10am for the ceremony.
Coun Quinn died on Christmas Day after suffering a heart attack two days earlier.
He had been delivering Christmas cards to his Droylsden constituents, alongside his wife Coun Susan Quinn, when he was taken ill on December 23.
The 57-year-old father of two later died in hospital with his family at his bedside.
His funeral will be open to the public and followed by a private burial.
All donations in his memory should be made to Tameside Hospitals critical care/high dependency unit, quoting the reference Fund 719 CCU/HDU.
Tributes poured in to Coun Quinn after his unexpected death over Christmas, with Greater Manchester MPs joining the chorus of praise for the council leader.
First elected to the town hall in 1984, the Droylsden councillor had led Tameside council since 2010, quickly becoming a major figure in the region’s combined authority and a cheerleader for devolution.
He was also chair of the Greater Manchester Pension Fund and was working to find new ways to fund affordable housing.
Described as a ‘proud trade unionist,’ tributes to Coun Quinn immediately poured in from Tameside residents, fellow politicians and members of the Labour party.
Stalybridge and Hyde MP Jonathan Reynolds said he was ‘absolutely bereft,’ while Oldham West and Royton MP Jim McMahon – who served alongside Coun Quinn on the combined authority while Oldham council leader – described his death as ‘heartbreaking.’
“Kieran was a decent man, Labour to his bones, and will be sorely missed,” he said.
Coun Quinn’s son Liam said his family had been ‘overwhelmed’ with tributes and messages of condolence, adding that his dad ‘absolutely loved’ Droylsden and ‘fighting for the people of this town.’