Mark Crowther, councillor
Mark Crowther, who has died at of 54, was the leader of Wakefield's Conservative group at a time when it controlled 24 of the district's 63 seats '“ ore than at any time in the current century.
He died after what his family called “a long, courageous and stoic journey”.
He had been voted in as a representative for Pontefract South in 2008, and became the party’s leader in the council chamber the following year. He lost his seat at the 2012 election, one of nine forfeited by the Conservatives in a single night.
Outside politics, he ran his own business as a management consultant.
He is survived by his wife, Susan, and daughter Georgina.