Tributes have been paid to former Margate mayor Roy Ford, who died on Saturday, (October 9).

A district councillor from 1987 to 2007, much of his life in Margate was interlocked with his predecessor, the late Charles Young, who he not only followed as mayor but also as county councillor for Margate Central in 1993.

In 1995, his wife Ruth was elected to Thanet council and they shared the unique distinction of being the only husband and wife team who were chairmen of committees at the same time – he at planning, she at housing.
As well as mayor and mayoress, they were also both Margate charter trustees.

A former councillor in Manchester, he sat on a range of committees and groups, and was UK representative at the International Council of Museums.

Although his three children urged him to stay away from politics once the family moved to Thanet, he became a Labour candidate and then councillor.
As a councillor and mayor he was keen to preserve the town’s history, and worked to modernise the charter trustees to make them more relevant to residents. He was also behind the development of Palm Bay Primary School and was a strong supporter of Westwood Cross.

During the Second World War, he was a officer in the Parachute Regiment at Arnhem and suffered leg and hand injuries during hand-to-hand combat.

Thanet Labour group leader Cllr Clive Hart said: “Roy was a real local character and it was an honour and a privilege to follow in his footsteps at both Thanet council and Kent County Council.

“Roy and I shared a love of books and it was really fitting that the last few occasions I spoke with him was when we met in cafes and in bookshops at Westwood Cross, the retail development he argued so strongly for, and was so proud to be associated with.

"He will be sadly missed by all of us in the Labour Party across Thanet.”

Fellow Labour councillor Iris Johnston added: “He was much loved and great fun. He has a really hard worker and will be missed by all who knew him.

“I saw him a few weeks ago in church and he was making anti-coalition comments, so he was still full of fighting spirit for the Labour cause.”

A funeral service will be held at St John’s parish church, Margate, at 11.15am on Friday, October 15, followed by a burial at the town’s Manston Road cemetery.