Prime Minister Andy Burnham has cancelled engagements following the death of his father, Roy, who had been suffering from Alzheimer’s.
Mr Burnham has previously spoken about the impact of his father’s illness, saying Roy did not know that his son had become prime minister.
In an interview before taking office in July, Mr Burnham said his father had been unaware that he was on the brink of power.
“That’s a sadness because he would be proud,” he said. “The way I look at it, it’s his achievement as well. A whole family achievement although he doesn’t know it.”
His father’s condition has been among the factors driving Mr Burnham’s plans to reform the social care system. In a speech on the issue later in July, he pledged to help “my dad and the millions like him” facing what he described as the unfairness of the system.
Roy Burnham was a telephone engineer who worked first for the Post Office and later for BT.
Writing about his upbringing in Culcheth during the 1970s and 1980s, Mr Burnham described his family as close-knit and paid tribute to his parents’ support.
“Their approach was one of quiet encouragement and confidence-building,” he wrote. “Our family home in Culcheth was always full of music, life, laughter, love and support.”
