Reflecting Mrs Dunwoody's fierce commitment, passionate beliefs and infectious good humour, the tributes were warm and heartfelt, even from those who had felt the lash of her tongue.

As well as being the longest-serving women MP in the House of Commons, Mrs Dunwoody, the MP for Crewe and Nantwich, proved a formidable chairman of the Commons Transport Committee.

Leading the tributes, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said: "So many people will be so sad to hear of the death of Gwyneth Dunwoody.

"She was always her own person. She was fiercely independent. She was politics at its best - a great parliamentarian. She will be sadly missed in all parts of the Houses of Parliament."

Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly described Mrs Dunwoody as having a passion for transport.

Ms Kelly added: "Gwyneth was an outstanding parliamentarian and a larger-than-life figure who tirelessly served the people of Crewe and Nantwich."

Labour deputy leader and leader of the House of Commons Harriet Harman said Mrs Dunwoody was "an outstanding politician and a champion in the fight for social justice".

She added: "She was a strong parliamentarian and a committed campaigner who was admired and feared in equal measure. I will sorely miss her. We shall not see her like again."

Tory leader David Cameron said: "I was saddened to hear about the death of Gwyneth Dunwoody. She was courageous in her political beliefs and an inspiration to many. Her defiance and willingness to stand up to the Establishment was truly admirable. She will be a sad loss to the House of Commons."

The president of the Automobile Association Edmund King said: "There was immense respect and a certain fear of Gwyneth, whether you represented planes, trains or automobiles.

"I have known transport professionals shaking in their boots before a Select Committee grilling from her. I felt that I always got a hard but fair hearing from Mrs Dunwoody. I got told off by her several times."

Ms Dunwoody's son, David, said she had been ill for about a week and had been admitted to hospital and had died on Thursday evening.

He said: "She was a woman who stood up and said what she believed was true and defended those who did not have many people to defend them. And she stood up for her principles. She was a wonderful woman."

Ms Dunwoody, who was highly respected on all sides of the Commons, joined the Labour Party in 1946 and first entered Parliament as the MP for Exeter in 1966.

From 1967 she was a Minister on the former Board of Trade in Harold Wilson's Government, but lost her seat in 1970 when the Tories swept back to power under Edward Heath.

She was elected MP for Crewe in 1974, which became Crewe and Nantwich in a 1983 boundary change. She was also a member of the European Parliament from 1974 to 1979, when Euro-MPs were nominated by national parliaments.

She was frequently a thorn in the Government's side. In 2001 she survived an attempt by Labour whips to remove her from the Transport Committee, which under her chairmanship often produced highly-critical reports.

Backbench Labour MPs refused to support the move when it went to a vote in the Commons.

She carried on as chairman of the committee to her death.