Tributes paid to former council leader Lord Peter Smith who has died

Lord Smith spent 27 years leading the council, making him one of the longest serving leaders in the country, and in 2019 he was recognised with a prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award.

The Leigh West councillor served as leader of Wigan Council since 1991 and over the past three decades gained a reputation as one of the most influential council leaders in the UK.

In paying tribute to his public service, leading figures in local government described Lord Smith as “an inspirational leader” and “the glue that held Greater Manchester together” when he stepped down as council leader in May 2018.

Lord Smith’s commitment and determination to improve the area has helped drive forward the transformation of the area from post-mining decline to a modern and thriving borough.

His leadership over many years on a regional stage through AGMA and the Greater Manchester Combined Authority were key to delivering the devolution deal which saw Greater Manchester take control of powers and budgets from Whitehall in 2014.

He recognised early that boroughs could not work in isolation, and championed wider cooperation on issues such as transport and health. Although the ‘Congestion Charge’ referendum in 2008 was lost, his forward thinking on integrated green transport meant he and the wider team secured funding to improve transport links and deliver services such as Leigh Guided Busway. Future efforts such as to introduce a smartcard ticketing system built on the team’s early work.

Lord Smith, who started his career in local government when he was elected as a Labour Party ward councillor for Leigh West in 1978, gained his political reputation in council finance, moving from chairman of the finance committee for nine years into council leader.

His success as council leader led to many regional and national appointments throughout the 1980s and 1990s including chair of the North West Regional Assembly and vice-president of the Local Government Association.

In 1999 he was made Lord Smith of Leigh in recognition of his work in local government. Ever the pragmatist, though he initially debated whether to accept the elevation due to his socialist principles, he realised that a seat in the Lords would allow him to further the causes of the people of Wigan, the north west and wider local government.

As a big sports fan and supporter of Leigh Centurions rugby league club Lord Smith was determined to boost the health of local people and provide the very best sports facilities in the borough. He was part of the team which has secured the Rugby League World Cup 2021 and Women’s Euros 2022 for Leigh.

This led to the development of Leigh Sports Village, now the home of Leigh Centurions and Manchester United Women’s Team, which was officially opened by the Queen in May 2009.

Other high-profile projects achieved in his tenure include the building of the DW Stadium, the home of Wigan Athletic and Wigan Warriors at Robin Park.

His passion for health and wellbeing saw him lead the work on health devolution on a Greater Manchester level as well as in Wigan Borough.

He was chairman of the Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership Board taking the lead on bringing health and social care services across the city-region closer together to improve health and ensure the vulnerable and elderly get the best care.

A former board member and chairman of Manchester Airport, his retention of airport shares for Wigan Council is now resulting in millions of pounds of annual dividends to support investment in communities.

His leadership also saw Wigan Council cope with some of the worst budget council cuts in its history in 2010. However, through Lord Smith’s taking a different approach the council sought to improve services and increase resident satisfaction.

Branded as The Deal, this approach has since been followed by councils across the country and in Europe, and has won numerous national awards.

Lord Smith served as a ward councillor for Leigh West, a position he held for 43 years. As a proud Leyther Lord Smith felt a deep responsibility for his hometown and was committed to returning to improve the lives of his community after leaving to study at the London School of Economics. He has always ensured the east of the borough had its fair share of funding, and the £5m Believe In Leigh fund, to improve the town centre and provide more facilities for young people, will be a lasting legacy.

After stepping down as council leader, due to the respect and trust in which he was held by health professionals, he continued in his capacity as lead member for the Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership. Future work in this area will be built on the firm foundations he laid.

In 2019 Lord Smith won the prestigious LGiU Lifetime Achievement Award for his commitment and determination in seeing through the improvement in Wigan and helping to transform it into a modern borough. The Local Government Information Unit (LGiU) and CCLA organise the only national awards ceremony to honour the work of councillors.

Tributes have poured in to Lord Smith

Cllr David Molyneux, current leader of Wigan Council, led the tributes.

Cllr Molyneux

He said: “Peter was not just a remarkable leader and councillor, but a husband, a dad and a very good friend.

“His death will leave a very big hole in people’s hearts, including mine. It was an honour to serve alongside him as his deputy and I will miss his wisdom and friendship.

“He achieved so many great things for Wigan Borough and will leave a lasting legacy.”

Alison McKenzie-Folan, chief executive of Wigan Council, added: “Lord Peter Smith was a remarkable leader and councillor. I am deeply saddened by his death and will miss him dearly. His passion, ambition and dedication to the job helped him to achieve so much for Wigan Borough and for that we will be eternally grateful. He meant a great deal to everyone, including me. But his legacy will live on for many years to come.”

Lord Peter Smith receiving his award from LGiU chair Cllr Michael Payne in 2019

From Leigh to the House of Lords

Peter Smith was born in Leigh in 1945, the second son of a draughtsman and medical secretary.

After attending Butts CE Primary School he won a scholarship at age 11 to go to Bolton School, following his brother Robin. He was a younger contemporary of Sir Ian McKellen, who he would honour in 2015 with a star in Wigan’s Believe Square.

It was at Bolton School where Peter first developed his love for politics as a process for resolving complex and contentious matters.

His school reports described him as “an able boy of distinct and intense individuality. Possibly inclined to think with his heart and let emotion strongly influence reason.”

He joined the Labour Party in 1964 and graduated in Economics and Politics from the London School of Economics in 1967.

He married Joy in 1968 and after securing a PGCE took his first teaching job in the East End of London before moving back up north and settling in Leigh where his daughter Anna, now a successful artist, was born in 1983.

He was first inspired to enter politics after visiting a “house-proud widow who was being forced to use buckets to catch the rain coming through the roof that her landlord refused to repair.”

He stood for a council seat in 1976 but lost and in 1978 he won by a single vote.

That single vote led to an illustrious political career which saw him enter the House of Lords in 1999, welcome the Queen to open Leigh Sports Village in 2009 and secure Greater Manchester devolution in 2014.

In three decades at Wigan Council’s helm, Lord Peter Smith has not only left a lasting legacy in the modern history of Wigan Borough, but also across The North West region and in Local Government nationally.