MPs gather for the funeral of Sir Tony Lloyd

Pall bearers carried a wicker casket surrounded by cream and purple flowers

The family of Sir Tony Lloyd urged mourners at his funeral to “continue told him your hearts”.

The 73-year-old veteran politician, who was MP for Rochdale, died last month after announcing he had untreatable leukaemia.

A requiem mass in his honour took place earlier at St Hugh Of Lincoln RC Church, Stretford.

Labour Leader Sir Keir Starmer and Gordon Brown, the former Labour prime minister, were among those gathered.

The MP was first elected to represented Stretford in 1983

Mairead Smyth our BBC Manchester reporter has been at the funeral

MPs from across the political divide arrived at St. Hugh of Lincoln RC Church in Stretford to pay their tributes to Sir Tony Lloyd.

His remains were brought to the church in a wicker coffin, surrounded by lilac and cream flowers, before the funeral began with the hymn Amazing Grace.

The service ended with a tribute from Sir Tony Lloyd’s family, who thanked everyone for attending and said the other tributes that had been extended were “testament to the person he was”.

The family asked: “Please continue to hold him in your hearts, as he will forever be in ours.”

The Labour Leader Sir Kier Starmer arrived with the Mayor for Greater Manchester Andy Brunham

At the time of his death, Sir Kier said everyone held him in high esteem.

The Speaker of the House of Commons Sir Lindsay Hoyle said the “country has lost one of the nicest, most effective MPs”.

The former PM Gordon Brown arrived with the Labour MP for Wirral South Alison McGovern

Sir Tony led a long life of public service, having first been elected to Parliament to represent Stretford in 1983.

He also served as MP for Manchester Central after changes to constituency boundaries.

He stood down from Parliament to become the Greater Manchester Police and Crime Commissioner in 2012, and then return for a second stint in the Commons, representing Rochdale from 2017.

The Requiem Mass for former Rochdale MP was held at St Hugh Of Lincoln RC Church in Stretford

A by-election will take place at the end of February to elect a new MP.

Earlier this week, Labour withdrew support for candidate Azhar Ali over comments he had made about Israel and the conflict in Gaza.

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